lifornia 
onal 


s* 


Fl  LLJ^oRE 


THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


LESSONS 


MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


BY 


JOHN  COMFORT  FILLMORE. 

AUTHOR  OF  "HISTORY  OF  PIANO  MUSIC."     "NEW  LESSONS  IN  HARMONY,"" 

ETC. 


PHILADELPHIA  : 

THEODORE  PRESSER, 
1704  CHESTNUT  STREET. 


ENTERED  ACCORDING  TO  ACT  OF  CONGRESS   IN  THE  YEAR    1 888   I\~THE 

OFFICE  OF  THE  LIBRARIAN  OF   CONGRESS  AT 

WASHINGTON,  D.  C. 


College 
Library 

flL 


. 


PREFACE. 


THIS  little  book  is  the  result  of  the  author's  own  efforts  to  interest 
his  pupils  in  the  History  of  Music  and  to  give  them  an  outline 
of  that  history,  presenting  its  salient  facts  in  a  clearer  per- 
spective than  he  could  find  in  any  text-book  he   had  tried 
to  use.    Since  the  book  was  begun,  the  excellent  history  of 
Dr.  Langhans  has  appeared  in  English,  but  the  translation 
is  so  clumsy  as  not  to  preclude  the  necessity  of  some  other  text-book 
for  English-speaking  students.     There  still  remains  the  need  of  an 
exhaustive  history  to  follow  such  an  outline  as  is  here  attempted.  Those 
who  read  German  can  find  it  in  the  admirable  histories  of  Von  Dommer 
and  Ambros ;  but  the  counterparts  of  these  Avorks  are  not  yet  to  be 
found  in  English.  ChappelTs  history,  so  far  as  it  has  gone,  is  interesting, 
and  instructive  to  discriminating  readersj    but  its  author  seems  too 
opinionated  and  too~unbalanced  to  ~Be  thoroughly  trusted  as  a  guide. 
Rowbotham   is  valuable  to  those  who  can  devote  attention  to  such 
details  as  the  minute  study  of  Greek  rhythms  and  other  fine  points  of 
ancient  music,  and  will  be  interesting  even  to  those  who  can  read  it  but 
superficially.    But  the  second  of  his  two  large  volumes  already  pub- 
lished only  brings  us  through  the  music  of  the  Greek  tragedy.    The 
histories  of  Burney  and  Hawkins  are  not  to  be  forgotten,  but  they  are, 
of  course,  antiquated.     Macfarren's,  Ritter's,  Bouavia  Hunt's,  Kockstro's 
and  others  are  outlines  only. 

The  most  important  auxiliary  to  the  English  speaking  student  of 
musical  history  is  Grove's  "  Dictionary  of  Music  and  Musicians,"  by  far 
the  most  complete  encyclopedia  yet  published  in  English,  a  library  in 
itself.  It  ought  to  be  accessible  to  every  student  of  music.  There  is  a 
short  "Dictionary  of  Music  and  Musicians"  appended  to  \V.  S.  B. 
Mathews'  "How  to  Understand  Music,"  which  will  be  found  very 
handy  for  reference.  The  book  itself  is  valuable  reading,  and  a  second 
volume,  now  in  preparation,  will  cover  important  ground  in  the  history 
of  music.  Naumann's  History  is  valuable  for  its  illustrations.  Many 
of  these  are  also  to  be  found  in  Mendel's  ".Conversations-lexicon,"  the 
most  extensive  musical  encyclopedia  for  those  who  read  German.  A 
smaller,  but  most  valuable  German  encyclopedia  is  Dr.  Hugo  Riemann's 
41  Musikalisches  Conversations-Lexikon."  Among  special  histories 


1115822 


Kiemann's  •'  Studien  zur  Gesschichte  der  Notenschrift,"  is  perhaps  the 
most  important  contribution  to  our  knowledge  made  in  recent  years. 
It  ought  to  be  translated  into  clear  and  readable  English.  Dr.  Eiemann 
is  doubtless  the  greatest  living  musical  theorist  and  no  student  of  music 
can  afford  to  ignore  his  works.  Unfortunately  none  of  them  have  been 
translated  except  his  lecture  on  "  The  Nature  of  Harmony "  and  his 
"  Comparative  Piano  School." 

In  biography  we  are  better  off.  The  series  entitled  "  The  Great 
Musicians,"  edited  by  Franz  Hueffer  is  strongly  to  be  recommended.. 
Its  American  publishers  are  Scribner  and  Welford,  New  York.  Kara- 
sowski's  "  Life  of  Chopin  "  is  now  to  be  had  in  English.  This  is  the 
stand  ird  biography  of  Chopin.  Liszt's  "  Chopin  "  is  interesting  but  is, 
in  some  respects,  inaccurate  and  misleading.  Schumann's  Essays  are 
well-known  and  so  is  Wasielwski's  "  Life  of  Schumann."  It  is  matter 
of  pride  to  Americans  that  the  standard  life  of  Beethoven  is  the 
production  of  an  American,  A.  W.  Thayer.  Unfortunately,  it  has  thus 
far  appeared  only  in  German.  The  works  connected  with  Mendelssohn's 
name  are  numerous  and  valuable ;  his  letters  are  especially  charming. 
"  Music  and  Morals  "  and  "  My  Musical  Memories,"  by  the  Rev.  H.  R. 
Harries,  are  excellent  reading.  But  I  will  not  further  extend  a  list 
which  could  hardly  be  made  exhaustive.  The  student  who_  makes  hia 
own  choice  of  the  books  here  enumerated  will  know  how  to  discriminate- 
as  to  his  further  reading. 

Milwaukee,  Wisn  November  1887.  J.  C.  F. 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


INTRODUCTION. 

IN  the  logical  order  of  thought,  the  considera- 
tion of  the  nature  of  music  naturally  precedes  the 
investigation  of  its  function.  But  its  function 
was  undoubtedly  perceived  ages  before  there  was 
any  thought  of  investigating  its  nature  on  scien- 
tific principles.  We  shall  not  go  astray,  then, 
perhaps,  if  we  first  try  to  imagine  to  ourselves 
what  the  first  music  in  the  world  must  have  been 
and  why  people  practiced  it.  If  we  can  get  at 
the  real  motive  which  impelled  people  to  make 
music  we  shall  surely  become  enlightened  as  to 
its  real  function  in  the  economy  of  human  nature. 
The  insight  we  thus  gain  will  serve  as  a  sure 
guide  through  all  the  mazes  of  musical  history. 

We  may  assume  as  certain  that  the  first  ele- 
mentary efforts  at  music  were  vocal,  and  not 
instrumental.  For  the  human  voice  was  certainly 
in  existence  before  any  other  musical  instruments 
were  invented.  People  sang  before  they  had 
instruments  to  play  on.  Mothers  crooned  to  their 
babes,  rocking  them  backward  and  forward  in 
their  arms  as  they  hushed  them  to  sleep.  Men 
shouted  defiance  to  their  enemies  in  inarticulate 
cries  and  yells.  Young  men  and  maidens  danced, 
and  sung  to  their  dancing.  We  may  be  sure  of 
these  things,  because  they  are  to  be  found  among 
the  most  primitive  and  savage  peoples  of  our  own 
time,  and  because  we  have  authentic  accounts  of 
them  among  ancient  primitive  peoples.  Human 
nature  is  essentially  the  same  in  all  ages  and  under 
vii 


INTRODUCTION. 


The  nature  and 
function  of 
music. 


The  earliest 
music  not 
instrumental, 
but  vocal. 


via 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


iNTROPfCTlON. 


The  function 
of  mutic  if  to 
e-jrfireff  and 
excite  feeling. 


The  nature  of 
music. 

Primitire  mutic 
made  up  of 
melody  and 
rhythm. 


all  conditions,  and  we  cannot  doubt  that  the 
impulse  which  leads  to  such  manifestations  now 


our  remotest  ancestors  to  express  their  feelings 
in  similar  ways. 

This  phrase  "express  their  feelings"  suggests- 
at  least  one  of  the  motives  which  impelled  people 
i  to  sing.  The  savage  yells  at  his  enemy  because 
his  yelling  is  the  natural  expression  of  his  emo- 
tional excitement.  The  mother  croons  to  her  babe 
because  she  feels  like  doing  so.  It  is  the  natural 
expression  of  her  emotional  state.  But  this  is  not 
all.  She  does  so  because  of  its  effect  on  the  child. 
She  knows  intuitively  that  this  monotonous,  meas- 
ured flow  of  sound,  the  expression  of  her  own 
quiet  happiness,  will  soothe  the  infant  into  a  rest- 
ful state  of  feeling  and  dispose  it  to  slumber.  The 
warrior  feels  that  the  expression  of  his  rage  by 
means  of  violent  sounds  will  excite  his  comrades 
to  valor  and  perhaps  strike  terror  into  his  ene- 
mies. The  singing  of  the  dancers  is  equally  expres- 
sive of  their  emotional  state,  and  tends  to  excite 
those  feelings  to  still  greater  activity.  Vocal 
music,  then,  is  a  natural  product  of  human  nature, 
and  its  function  is  to  express  and  excite  feeling, 

In  the  primitive  music  above  referred  to  we 
find  two  of  the  essential  elements  of  all  music — 
Melody  and  Rhythm.  Melody  is  a  succession  of 
single  musical  sounds,  differing  more  or  less  in 
pitch.  Rhythm  is  a  succession  of  beats  or  pulsa- 
tions occurring  at  regular  intervals.  There  is  a 
natural  tendency  in  human  nature  to  make  all 
melody  rhythmic.  The  mother's  low  song  to  her 
babe  naturally  falls  into  regularly  recurring 
rhythmic  divisions,  accompanied  by  corresponding 
movements  of  the  body.  Rhythm  is  of  the  very 
essence  of  the  dance;  and  the  rhythmic  motions 
of  the  dancers  are  accompanied  with  rhythmic 


INTRODUCTION. 


IX 


The  beginnings 
of  instrumental 

music. 


song,  the  clapping  of  hands  and  the  stamping  of 
feet.  The  element  of  rhythm  becomes  most 
strongly  marked  in  war  dances.  In  these  the 
motions  are  violent,  the  songs  loud  and  harsh 
and  the  rhythm  often  marked  by  the  striking  of 
war  clubs  on  hollow  logs  or  on  some  resounding 
instrument  of  percussion. 

Instruments  of  percussion  were,  doubtless,  the 
first  to  be  invented.  From  marking  the  rhythm 
by  pounding  on  a  tree  or  post  with  a  club,  it 
was  not  far  to  covering  the  end  of  a  hollow  log 
with  a  ^tretched  skin,  thus  producing  a  rude 
drum.  CProgres|  was  then  easy  toward  the  whole 
family  of  drums,  tom-toms,  gongs,  cymbals, 
tambourines,  etc.,  the  latter  kind  as  soon  as  metals 
and  metal  working  had  been  discovered.  Wind 
instruments  were  probably  invented  by  some  such 
accident  as  hearing  a  broken  reed  give  forth  a 
musical  tone  when  blown  across  by  the  wind. 
The  Egyptian  and  Greek  myth  has  it  that  the  god 
Hermes,  walking  by  the  Nile  bank,  picked  up  a 
tortoise  shell  which  had  some  sun-dried  membranes 
stretched  across  it,  and  that  this  gave  him  the  idea 
of  the  lyre.  It  is  not  improbable  that  some  such 
accident  as  this  really  occasioned  the  invention  of 
stringed  instruments.  Or  perhaps  the  idea  came 
from  a  tightly-stretched  bowstring.  However 
this  may  be,  the  first  instrumental  music  must 
have  been  associated  with  vocal  music,  and  must 
have  been  essentially  the  same  in  its  nature  and 
function.  That  is,  it  consisted  of  rhythmical 
successions  of  sounds,  which  owed  their  origin  to 
the  innate  impulse  to  express,  convey  and  excite 
feeling. 

As  time  went  on  and  the  savage  developedmto 
the  barbarian,  and  from  the  barbarian  into  the 
"civilized  man,  there  was,  we  know,  a  gradual 


Sensuous  beaut j 
of  tone. 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


INTRODUCTION. 


The  intellectual 
fitment  in 
music. 


VnUy. 


growth  in  refinement.  This  improvement  showed 
'tselflnTlnusicanperception  as  well  as  elsewhere. 
The  power  of  discriminating  qualities  of  tone,  like 
other  faculties,  grows  with  use  and  attention,  and 
sensuous  beauty  of  tone  gradually  came  to  be 
regarded  as  a  refined  sensuous  pleasure  in  itself. 
It  was  enjoyed  apart  from  its  emotional  signifi- 
cance, just  as  the  perfume  of  a  rose  is.  So  we  find 
it  now.  There  are  persons  who  lay  undue  stress 
the  element  of  sensuous  beauty  in  music, 


on 


disregarding  other  and  higher  considerations.  To 
such,  music  becomes  a  sensuous  indulgence — 
refined,  indeed,  but  still  involving  a  minimum  of 
intellectual  and  moral  quality. 

In  the  course  of  time  the  awakened  human  in- 
tellect began  to  deal  with  music  as  with  other  sub- 
jects in  which  men  were  interested.  Philosophers 
began  to  investigate  the  physical  and  mathematical 
relations  of  tones,  and  thus  arose  the  science  of 
ACOUSTICS.  Composers  began  to  analyze  rhythms 
and  to  balance  groups  of  small  rhythmical  units 
against  each  other  to  make  symmetrically  larger 
units,  and  thus  began  the  science  and  art  of 
MELODIC  FORM.  They  also  began  to  combine 
two  and  afterward  more  melodies  sounding  at 
the  same  time  into  one  whole,  and  thus  arose 
COUNTERPOINT.* 

They  learned  to  secure  Unity  in  these  composi- 
tions by  using  the  same  melody  as  a  second  voice- 
part,  only  beginning  it  some  time  after  the  first.  Thus 
arose  Strict  and  afterward  Free  IMITATION.  From 
this  principle  were  developed,  in  the  strict  style, 
CANON  and  FUGUE.  From  the  free  treatment  of 


* " Counterpoint "  means  "point  against  point."  The 
term  was  first  used  before  our  modern  notes  were  in- 
vented, when  points  were  used  to  indicate  tones. 


INTRODUCTION. 


XI 


imitations  were  developed  all  the  modern  forms. 
This  unity  of  idea,  secured  by  developing  a  com- 
position through  varied  repetitions  of  a  few  melodic 
ideas  (Themes  or  Motives),  is  called  THEMATIC 
TREATMENT. 

Once  the  idea  of  combining  melodies  had  been 
developed,  the  step  was  inevitable  to  thinking 
sounds  in  combinations,  or  Chords.  It  took  a  long 
time  before  men  learned  to  think  complex  music 
otherwise  than  as  combinations  of  simultaneously 
progressing  melodies.  They  thought  it  horizontally, 
so  to  speak.  But  after  a  time  they  learned  to 
think  it  perpendicularly.  That  is,  they  learned  to 
think  of  each  combination  of  simultaneously  sound- 
ing tones  (chord)  as  a  musical  unit ;  and  they 
gradually  found  out  the  laws  governing  the 
natural  relations  of  succession  chords.  The  science 
of  chords  and  of  their  successions  and  relations  is 
called  HARMONY. 

Finally,  men  developed  the  art  of  combining 
and  contrasting  the  different  qualities  of  tones 
produced  by  different  kinds  of  instruments  so  as  to 
produce  beautiful  effects,  and  to  heighten  and 
intensify  emotional  expression.  This  is  the  art  of 
INSTRUMENTATION,  or  ORCHESTRATION.  All  these 
belong  to  the  intellectual  element  in  music.  Logi- 
cally and  historically,  they  come  after  the  emo- 
tional and  sensuous  enjoyment  of  music. 

The  imagination  is  the  great  constructive 
faculty.  In  the  beginning  of  music  it  had  only 
the  simplest  elements  of  melody  and  rhythm  as 
material  with  which  to  deal.  But  it  dealt  with 
these  in  their  relation  to  feeling,  and  the  folk-songs 
of  all  nations  are  the  sincere,  spontaneous  expression 
of  natural  feeling.  Gradually,  as  the  sensuous 
perception  and  the  intellectual  .elements  in  music 
were  developed,  the  food  for  the  imagination 


INTRODUCTION. 


Harmony. 


Instrumenta- 
tion. 


The 

imagination. 


Xll 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


IXTRODVCnON. 


Summary. 


Relatire  rank 
of  compoteri 
and  their  icorkt. 


became  richer  and  more  varied,  until  we  have 
now  a  wealth  of  musical  material  sufficient  to  tax 
the  imaginative  power  of  a  Beethoven  or  a 
Wagner. 

To  sum  up,  then,  music  is,  in  its  nature,  that 
one  of  the  Fine  Arts  which  has  for  its  material 
musical  tones.  It  affords  us  enjoyment  on  its 
lowest  plane  through  the  discrimination  of  refined 
from  coarse  tones  and  by  combinations  and  con- 
trasts of  different  qualities  of  tone.  The  pleasure 
thus  derived  is  refined,  but  it  is  sensuous  merely. 
Music  adds  to  this  very  high  intellectual  enjoy- 
ment. In  its  more  elaboratic  forms,  such  as  the 
fugue,  the  sonata,  the  symphony,  the  music-drama,, 
it  taxes  the  intellectual  resources  of  both  composer 
and  student  in  equal  degree  with  the  greatest 
intellectual  productions  of  the  human  mind  in 
other  fields  of  activity.  It  thus  adds  intellectual 
to  sensuous  enjoyment,  and  so  ranks  high  in  the 
scale  of  mental  activities. 

But  its  primary  and  ultimate  function  is  to- 
express,  convey  and  excite  feeling.  To  this  the 
sensuous  and  intellectual  elements  are  subordinate. 
The  imagination  reaches  its  highest  flights  and 
performs  its  most  legitimate  function  when  it 
deals  with  its  musical  materials  in  their  relation, 
to  emotion. 

The  rank  of  a  composer,  like  that  of  any  other 
creative  artist,  depends,  first  of  all,  on  the  vigor, 
vividness  and  fertility  of  his  imagination.  Crea- 
tive power  means  the  gift  of  spontaneous  invention* 
It  can  neither  be  learned  nor  taught ;  it  is  an 
original  gift  which  can  neither  be  acquired  nor 
accounted  for.  This  is  it  which  is  commonly  called 
Genius.  Nothing  else  can  take  the  place  of  it. 
Wherever  it  appears,  as  it  does  here  and  there 
among  men,  and  often  under  the  most  unexpected 


INTRODUCTION. 


Xlll 


and  apparently  unpromising  conditions,  the  world 
does  not  willingly  let  it  die.  Men  may  be  slow  in 
recognizing  it  ;  but  once  acknowledged,  it  becomes 
a  precious  and  immortal  possession  for  the  whole 
race.  Next  to  this  in  importance  comes  what  is 
commonly  called  Talent.  This  means  a  special 
aptitude  for  artistic  perception  and  attainment, 
and  for  applying  acquired  ideas,  without  much 
original  power  of  invention.  In  its  higher  mani- 
festations talent  so  closely  approximates  the  lower 
orders  of  genius  that  it  is  often  not  easy  to  distin- 
guish them,  and  there  are  many  cases  that  have 
occasioned  dispute  among  critics. 

Butwhether  a  composer  be_^os§essedpfggniu8 
or  only  of  talent,  it  is  absolutely  essential  that  fie 
shouIdTJave"Tn8  mmft~nnrpIyJltoTett  with  musical 
material,  and  should  navg 


INTBODUCTION. 


^ 

the  intellectual  side.  He  must,  first  of  all,  have 
material  for  his  imagination  to  deal  with,  must 
acquire  musical  experience.  Accordingly,  we  find 
that  all  the  great  masters  of  composition  have 
diligently  studied  the  works  of  their  predecessors 
and  have  missed  no  opportunities  to  hear  the  best 
music.  They  have  studied  them  also  from  the 
intellectual  and  technical  side  ;  have  become  mas- 
ters of  the  technic  of  composition.  They  have 
realized  that  no  matter  what  ideas  a  composer 
may  have,  he  can  only  become  an  artist  by  acquir- 
ing the  power  to  express  them.  This  they  have 
done  by  infinite  painstaking,  and  so  much  have 
they  been  impressed  with  the  necessity  of  this, 
that  the  greatest  of  them  have  repeatedly  said,  in 
one  form  or  other,  that  genius  is  only  the  art  of 
taking  pains  ! 

But  this  is  not  enough.  Given  an  original, 
creative  mind,  with  acute  musical  perceptions, 
ample  intellectual  and  technical  attainments  and 


Need  of  ttudy. 


The  moral 
element. 


XIV 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


INTRODUCTION. 


Principles  of 

criticism. 


a  clear  comprehension  of  the  relation  of  music  to 
feeling,  it  still  remains  for  him  to  decide  what 
kind  of  emotion  he  will  choose  to  embody  in  music. 
He  may  choose  noble  or  ignoble  subjects ;  he  may, 
if  he  chooses,  treat  noble  subjects  in  an  ignoble 
way.  This  has  often  been  done  by  composers  of 
music  for  religious  worship  and  for  the  drama. 
Nor  can  he  escape  moral  choices  even  in  purely 
instrumental  music.  He  may  make  his  music  as 
high  in  aim  as  the  Beethoven  fifth  symphony,  or 
as  unheroic,  not  to  say  frivolous  and  base,  as  an 
Offenbach  waltz.  This  will  depend  on  his  own 
moral  character.  Base  men  cannot  write  great 
music,  nor  heroic  men  ignoble  music;  though 
even  weak  men  may  have  their  heroic  moments, 
and  noble  men  their  weak  ones.  But,  other 
things  being  equal,  the  rank  of  a  composer  will 
depend  on  the  nobility  of  his  feeling  and  of  his 
moral  purpose.  The  relative  rank  of  his  works 
will  depend  on  the  degree  in  which  they  embody 
the  noblest  and  best  that  is  in*  him. 

The  principles  above  set  forth  are  those  which 
will  determine  the  judgments  of  composers  and 
their  works  which  are  to  follow  in  this  book.  It 
will  seek  to  trace  the  development  of  the  different 
factors  in  musical  production  and  in  musical 
enjoyment  at  different  times  and  in  different 
nations.  It  will  seek  to  show  how  and  why  the 
course  of  musical  history  became  what  it  was. 
This  the  author  regards  as  of  even  more  import- 
ance than  an  authentic  record  of  historical  facts. 


INTRODUCTION. 


xv 


5 


QUESTIONS. 

How  do  we  seek  to  gain  an  insight  into  the  nature  of 
music  ? 

What  natural  impulses  of  human  nature  produced 
primitive  music?  Give  illustrations. 

What  are  the  primitive  elements  of  music? 

Give  the  probable  origin  of  primitive  instruments. 

How  did  men  come  to  a  more  discriminating  percep- 
tion of  the  difference  in  quality  of  tone  ? 

Give  an  account  of  the  intellectual  element  in  music. 

How  many  kinds  of  enjoyment  are  derivable  from 
music  ? 

On  what  does  the  rank  of  a  composer  depend  ? 

Why  do  even  gifted  composers  need  study  and  experi- 
ence? 

What  relation  has  music  to  the  moral  nature  of  man  ? 


INTBODXJCTION. 


*i*^A/*^f^^  ^/W 


I.— Chinese  Instruments.     The  "  Che"  "  or  "  Wonderful,"  a  25-stringed 
instrument,  and  the  "  Po-son,"  a  small  drum. 


II.— The  earliest  Egyptian  Harp. 
(XVI) 


III. — Greek  Instruments,     (a)  Plectrum,  (b)  Kithara,  (c)  Psaltery  or 
long  lyre,  (d)  Chelys,  a  small  lyre. 


IV.— Greek  Instruments,    (a)  and  (c),  Varieties  of  the  Lyre. 
(b)  Trigonon. 

(XVII) 


LESSON  I. 

ORIENTAL   AND   ANCIENT   MUSIC. 

Music,  as  we  know  it,  in  .its  developed  form 
as  a  line  art,  belongs  to  the jChristian  Era,ltncl 
practically,  to  tEeTast  four  centuries.  It  is  the 
latest  born  of  the  family  of  fine  arts,  and  is 
that  one  of  them  which  specially  corresponds 
to  the  needs  of  emotional  expression  as  devel- 
oped by  Christianity. 

Nevertheless,  music  in  its  more  elementary 
forms,  and  even  in  a  considerable  degree  of 
development,  as  regards  melody,  has  existed  for 
thousands  of  years,  among  nations  and  races 
the  most  various  and  diverse.  Harmony,  coun- 
ter-point, form  and  instrumentation's  we  know 
them,  are  modern  and  occidental.  But  the  most 
ancient  of  Oriental  civilizations,  in  China,  in 
India,  in  Persia,  in  Egypt  and  especially  in 
Greece,  used  and  prized  melody,  established 
scales,  investigated  acoustics,  and  had,  possi- 
bly, more  knowledge  of  harmony  and  of  instru- 
mental combinations  than  we  have  yet  been 
able  to  discover.  (See  illustration  I.) 

In  all  ancient  nations  music  was  believed  to 
be  of  divine  origin  and  in  that  stage  of  mental 
development  when  mythologies  invariably  arise 
there  was  always  a  mythology  connected  with 
the  art  of  music.  In  India  the  gift  of  music 
was  ascribed  to  BRAHMA.  To  his  son,  NARED, 
was  ascribed  the  invention  of  the  Vina,  an  in- 
strument of  the  guitar  type.  In  Egypt  the 
invention  of  the  lyre  was  ascribed  to  the  god 
THAUT,  who,  walking  one  day  by  the  Nile,  took 
up  a  tortoise  shell  to  which  some  dried  mem- 
branes still  adhered,  accidentally  set  them  in 

1 


Music  a  recent 
art. 


3Telody  ohter 
than  harmony. 


This  chapter 

preceding 

ancient 

mythobtpy 

concerning 

music. 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


JWraculr/ug 

l>owers 
fttfi'ibuted  to 


vibration  and  thus  produced  musical  tones.  In 
Greece  a  similar  legend  attached  to  HERMES. 
Other  similar  examples  might  be  cited  from 
China  and  elsewhere.  (See  illustrations  II,  III 
and  IV.) 

Miraculous  powers  were  attributed  to  music 
and  musicians.  Some  of  the  ancient  sacred 
songs  in  India  produced  rain ;  some  produced 
darkness.  Others  no  mortal  might  sing  under 
penalty  of  destruction  by  fire  from  heaven. 
Others  when  sung  forced  men,  animals  and  in- 
animate objects  to  obey  the  will  of  the  singer. 
In  Greece,  ORPHEUS  and  AMPHION  were  followed 
by  trees  and  by  wild  animals  which  lost  their 
ferocity  when  they  heard  their  songs.  In  Judea, 
the  walls  of  Jericho  fell  at  the  sound  of  the 
priests'  trumpets.  These  legends  serve  to  show 
how  great  was  the  impression  produced  on  the 
minds,  feelings  and  imaginations  of  the  ancients 
by  such  music  as  they  had. 

In  all  the  pre-Christian  civilizations  music 
was  regarded  as  an  elevating  exercise  of  the 
feelings,  intellect  and  imagination,  and  an  im- 
portant element  of  culture.  Theorists  occupied 
themselves  with  the  science  of  music,  with  the 
determination  of  intervals,  the  construction  of 
scales  and  the  building  of  melodies.  Curiously 
similar  results,  as  regards  scales,  were  arrived 
at  by  nations  widely  remote  from  each  other  in 
distance,  blood,  language,  religion  and  customs. 
The  Chinese  and  the  Indians  seem  to  have  had 
the  same  pentatonic  (five-toned)  scale  which  is 
still  to  be  found  in  the  ancient  music  of  the 
Celtic  nations,  such  as  the  Irish  and  Scotch.  It 
is  simply  our  major  diatonic  scale  with  the 
fourth  and  seventh  omitted.  These  intervals 
were  supplied  later,  and  this  scale,  which  we 
call  "  natural,"  was  found  equally  satisfactory 


Music 
regarded  as 
elevating. 


Ancient 

five-toned 

scales. 


ORIENTAL  AND  ANCIENT  MUSIC. 


by  Oriental  barbarians  whose  ideas  and  feelings 
are  incomprehensible  to  us.  But  the  musical 
results  they  otained  from  it,  especially  in  China, 
are  such  as  do  not  in  the  least  appeal  to  our 
musical  sympathies.  In  fact  they  often  outrage 
our  musical  susceptibilities,  as  our  music  does 
theirs.  Some  of  the  ancient  nations  also  had  a 
five-toned  under-scale  afterwards  developed  into 
:an  eight-toned  one.  This  last  was  the  reciprocal 
of  the  major  or  over-scale,  having  the  same 
order  of  tones  and  semi-tones  going  down  that 
the  over-scale  has  going  up.  Examples : 

Five-toned  over-scale  : 


Five-toned  under-scale:  CZ2—       ^    ^ 


In  both  these  pentatonic  scales  the  fourth 
and  seventh,  i.  e.,  the  intervals  which  give  the 
semitones  or  "  leading-note  "  progressions  are 
left  out  and  were  afterwards  supplied. 

All  these  ancient  nations  had  stringed  instru- 
ments, wind  instruments  of  wood  and  of  metal 
and  instruments  of  percussion.  In  China,  the 
latter  class  predominates.  To  India  we  proba- 
bly owe  the  invention  of  stringed  instruments 
played  with  a  bow.  Egypt  and  Greece  made 
common  use  of  stringed  instruments  plucked 
with  the  fingers  or  with  a  plectrum,  such  as  the 
lyre  and  the  harp,  the  percursors  of  our  modern 
harpsichord  and  piano-forte. 

The  splendid  intellectual  civilization  of  the 
Greeks  included  an  elaborate  musical  system. 
The  beginnings  of  Greek  musical  theory  were 
probably  derived  from  Egypt,  but  of  the  Egyp- 
tian theory  of  music  we  know  nothing  and  of 
its  practice  very  little.  Of  the  Greek  system 


Over-scale 

and 
Under-scale. 


Different 

families  of 

instruments. 


The  Greek 
musical 
system. 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


The 
Mnuftonft 


we  are  now  able  to  give  a,  tolerably  complete 
account.  The  latest  researches  have  profoundly 
modified,  not  to  say  revolutionized  the  ideas  of 
it  which  have  been  current  in  Christendom  since 
the  first  attempts  to  revive  the  Greek  scales  as 
a  basis  for  Christian  melody  about  the  end  of 
the  fifth  century  of  our  era.  Those  attempts 
resulted  in  a  serious  misapprehension  of  the 
facts  of  Greek  theory  and  practice,  and  the 
blunders  of  the  early  Christian  theorists  resulted 
finally  in  the  adoption  and  perpetuation  in  our 
system  of  a  so-called  "  minor  "  scale  vastly  in- 
ferior in  naturalness  and  in  rationality  to  the 
Greek  scale  from  which  it  was  perverted.  As 
a  consequence,  our  present  minor  scale  is  a 
clumsy  and  confused  substitute  for  what  might 
have  been  as  clear  and  satisfactory  a  scale  as  our 
present  "  major  "  one.  On  this  account  Greek 
musical  theory  has  a  special  interest  for  us. 

In  brief,  the  Greek  musical  system  had  for 
its  fundamental  unit  the  tetrachord,  or  series  of 
four  tones.  The  three  intervals  separating  these 
four  tones  consisted  invariably  of  two  tones  and 
one  semitone.  The  tetrachord  was  named  ac- 
cording to  the  position  of  the  semitone.  When 
the  semitone  came  between  the  first  tone  and 
the  second  (going  downward),  the  tetrachord 
was  called  Lydian.  When  it  was  between  the 
second  ,and  the  third,  it  was  called  Phrygian. 
When  it  was  between  the  third  and  fourth,  it 
was  called  Dorian.  There  were  three  different 
octave-species,"  modes  "or  scales,  as  we  should 
call  them,  corresponding  to  these,  made  by  con- 
joining two  tetrachords  of  the  same  kind  sepa- 
rated by  a  tone.  They  seem  to  have  been  all 
written  and  thought  downward,  not  upward,  as 
we  think  our  scales.  Expressed  in  modern 
notation  they  would  be  as  follows  : 


ORIENTLAL  AND  ANCIENT  MUSIC. 


1.  Lydian  Scale 


2.  Phrygian  Scale : 


3.  Dorian  Scale : 


1st  tetrachord.   2d  tetrachord. 


1st  tetrachord.   2d  tetrachord. 


1st  tetrachord.  2d  tetrachord. 


The  Indian  corresponds  to  our  modern  major 
scale  thought  downward.  The  Dorian  is  the 
exact  reciprocal  in  under  intervals  of  our  major 
scale  in  over  intervals,  the  semitones  coming 
between  the  third  and  fourth  and  seventh  and 
eighth,  giving  each  tetrachord  a  descending 
leading-note,  as  each  tetrachord  of  our  major 
scale  has  an  ascending  leading-note.  The  Dorian 
scale  was  the  favorite  one  of  the  Greeks,  owing, 
doubtless,  to  this  peculiarity  ;  for  the  semitone 
between  the  seventh  and  eighth,  seems  to  be  a 
natural  demand  of  the  human  ear  and  mind.  The 
Lydian  scale  they  did  not  like  so  well,  probably 
because  they  thought  it  downward  and  not  up- 
ivard,  thus  missing  the  peculiarly  satisfactory 
characteristic  of  the  upward  leading-tone. 

When,  after  the  lapse  of  about  four  centuries, 
there  began  to  be  felt  a  desire  to  base  the  music 
of  the  Christian  church  on  scientific  principles 
and  to  cultivate  music  in  a  scientific  way,  the 
natural  recourse  was  to  the  Greek  system,  for 
that  was  the  only  culture-music  yet  developed 
in  the  world.  But  the  Greek  civilization  had 
then  perished,  Greek  scholarship  was  unknown 


The  "  modes, 
"octave- 


or  scale*. 


Greek  scales 
thought  down- 
ward. 


Attempts  to 
base  Christian 
music  on  that 
of  the  Greeks. 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


in  Christendom,  and  the  attempt  to  revive  the 
Greek  scales  resulted  in  a  complete  misappre- 
hension of  the  way  the  Greeks  thought  their 
music.  Bishop  Ambrose,  of  Milan,  did  indeed 
get  hold  of  the  Greek  scales,  but  he  inverted 
them,  thought  them  upward  instead  of  down- 
ward, and  his  mistake  was  perpetuated  in 
Christian  music.  The  error  was  serviceable  in 
that  it  gave  us  the  real  natural  way  of  thinking 
the  major  scale,  which  finally  became  the  pre- 
dominant scale  of  European  music.  But  it  did 
harm  in  that  it  inverted  the  natural  order  of 
^e  Dorian  scale  and  prevented  any  true  per- 
ception of  its  real  character.  That  scale,  begun 
on  its  fifth  (A)  and  thought  upward,  thus. 


The 
"  complete 

system" 
<tf  the  Greeks. 


I 


•nr 

^ 


eventually  became  our  present  so-called  "minor" 
scale.  Thought  as  the  Greeks  thought  it,  there 
is  no  propriety  whatever  in  calling  it  a  "minor" 
scale ;  it  is  an  wnder-scale,  the  true  reciprocal 
of  the  ouer-scale,which  we,  with  equal  infelicity, 
call  "major."  The  revival  of  the  under-scale 
with  its  characteristic  melodic  and  harmonic 
possibilities  is  greatly  to  be  desired  as  an  en- 
richment of  our  musical  resources. 

In  later  times  the  Greeks  had  what  they  called 
a  "  complete  musical  system  ;  "  a  scale  of  two 
octaves, made  up  of  five  Dorian  tetrachords  not 
separated  by  a  tone  as  they  were  in  the  octave- 
species,  but  overlapping  and  with  a  final  added 
tone,  thus : 

The  Greek  "  Complete  Musical  System.''1 
1st  tetrachord.       3d  tetrachord.     5th  tetrachord. 


2d  tetrachord.        4th  tetrachord. 


Added 
final 
note. 


ORIENTAL  AND  ANCIENT  MUSIC. 


The  final  A  seems  to  have  been  added  merely 
to  complete  the  two  octaves.  Finally,  this 
"complete  system"  was  transposed,  without 
change  of  the  order  of  intervals,  to  each  of  the 
twelve  semitones  of  the  octave,  making  twelve 
different  "  modes,"  or,  as  we  should  say,"  keys." 
Each  of  these  modes  had  a  special  name.  Of 
these,  five,  namely,  those  beginning  on  D,  D&, 
E,  F  and  F  8,  were  regarded  as  principal  and  the 
others  as  subordinate.  Each  principal  mode 
had  two  subordinate  ones,  one  beginning  on  the 
fourth  below  and  one  beginning  on  the  fourth 
above.  Those  beginning  on  the  under-fourth 
were  designated  by  the  term  "  hypo,"  which 
means  "under"  and  those  beginning  on  the 
fourth  above  were  designated  by  the  term 
"hyper,"  which  means  "over," thus: 

Scheme  of  the  Greek  Modes. 

A,  Hypo-Dorian.       D,    Dorian.       G,    Hyper-Dorian. 
AJ,  Hypo-Ionian.        DJ,  Ionian. 

B,  Hypo-Phrvgian.  E, 

C,  Hypo-Aeolian.      F, 

CJ,  Hypo-Lydian.      FJ,  Lydian, 

Observe  that  some  of  these  are  duplicates. 
Observe, also, that  whereas  the  Dorian  "Octave- 
species  "  began  on  E,  the  "  complete  system  " 
which  began  on  E  was  called  Phrygian.  These 
names  were  confused  by  the  mediaeval  theorists, 
who  applied  to  the  scale  E-F-G-A-B-C-D-E 
the  name  "  Phrygian  Mode."  So  that  they  com- 
mitted at  least  two  blunders;  they  thought  this 
under-scale, the  Greek  "  Dorian  octave-species" 
upward  instead  of  downward,  as  the  Greeks 
thought  it,  and  they  applied  to  it  the  name 
which  the  Greeks  gave  only  to  their  "  complete 
system "  beginning  on  the  same  tone.  The}' 
blundered  similarly  with  reference  to  all  the 
other  scales  they  adopted  from  the  Greeks,  so 


G|,  Hyper-Ionian. 
Phrygian.  A,   Hyper-Phrygian. 
Aeolian.      Bb,  Hyper-Aeolian. 

B,    Hyper-Lydian. 


Its 
transpositions. 


Confusion  of 

mediceval 
nomenclature. 


LESSORS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


.' 

4 


that  Greek  musical  theory,  instead  of  being  an 
enlightening  element  in  our  modern  music,  as 
it  might  have  been,  became  a  misleading  and 
confusing  one.  The  effects  of  this  early  and 
long  continued  misunderstanding  of  Greek 
musical  ideas  have  been  for  centuries  firmly 
embedded  in  our  musical  system  and  are  now 
easily  recognizable  in  our  confused  treatment 
of  the  "  minor  "  scale.  It  will  probably  be  a 
good  while  before  we  learn  to  treat  the  "  minor  " 
scale  and  the  u  minor  "  chord  in  a  rational  way. 
For  a  lucid  presentation  of  this  subject  see 
"  The  Nature  of  Harmony,"  by  Dr.  Hugo  Rie- 
mann,  translated  by  the  present  writer  and 
published  by  the  publisher  of  this  history. 

QUESTIONS. 

What  did  the  ancients  do  in  music? 

What  did  they  not  do,  so  far  as  we  know  ? 

What  origin  did  they  assign  to  music  ? 

What  effects  were  attributed  to  it  in  their  mythologies  ? 

Give  examples. 

What  two  five-toned  scales  were  used  by  the  ancient 
Chinese  and  East  Indians? 

What  modern  races  have  had  one  or  both  of  these  scales? 

Into  what  two  eight-toned  scales  were  these  afterwards 
developed  ? 

What  kind  of  instruments  did  the  ancients  use? 

Whence  did  the  Greeks  probably  get  their  music? 

Give  a  brief  account  of  the  Greek  theory  of  music. 

What  lay  at  the  basis  of  their  system? 

Describe  the  difference  between  their  "  octave-species ',' 
and  their  "  complete  system." 

Which  "octave- species"  or  scale  was  their  favorite  ? 

How  did  this  scale  become  our  modern  "minor"  scale? 

What  effect  did  the  misapprehension  of  Greek  ideas 
produce  on  Christian  music? 

In  what  respects  did  the  early  Christian  and  mediaeval 
j  theorists  misunderstand  the  Greek  musical  theory  which 
'  they  sought  to  revive? 


LESSON  II. 

THE   FIRST  TEN  CENTURIES  OF  CHRISTIAN  MUSIC. 

THEhistory  of  music  practically  begins  jvith 
the  Christian  era.  There  hacTbeen  music,  of  one 
sort  or  anotKer,  from  a  very  early  period,  and 
some  nations,  as  the  Greeks,  for  example,  had  a 
very  elaborate  theoretical  and  practical  musical 
system.  But  what  wasreallyvaluable  in  their 
system  was  not  madejyailable^  in  modern  niusic. 

With  the  advent  ^f  the~TJhnstian  era,  music 
had  to  begin  anew,  almost  from  the  foundation. 
The  beginnings  of  Christianity  were  surrounded 
toy  Greek  influences.  Begun  and  propagated  by 
Hebrews,  it  soon  spread  among  the  Greek  popu- 
lations which  enclosed  Judea  on  all  sides,  and 
Greek  churches  were  speedily  organized.  Before 
the  death  of  the  immediate  disciples  and  followers 
of  Jesus,  numerous  Greek  congregations  called 
themselves  by  his  name,  professed  his  doctrines, 
worshiped  on  the  first  day  of  the  week,  broke 
tread  and  drank  wine  in  remembrance  of  him, 
and  sang  hymns  in  divine  service.  Thus  began 
a  new  era  which  was  to  supplant  the  ancient  civili- 
zation and  the  ancient  worship.  The  central 
element  in  the  new  faith  and  worship,  as  com- 
pared with  the  paganism  OfTDlTGrreeks.  ,Was  a 
pure  morality  Some  of  the  Greek  religious  rites, 
in  {He  ceremonial  part  of  which  vocal  and  instru- 
mental music  played  a  prominent  part,  were 
shockingly  immoral.  The  worship  of  Bacchus 
and  of  Aphrodite  (Venus)  consisted  principally 
in  unbridled  sensual  indulgence.  To  these  licen- 
tious orgies,  universal  among  pagan  Greeks,  all 
9 


LFSSUN  II. 


Beginning 
anew. 


Necessity 
of  it. 


10 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LISBON  II. 


Character 
of  early 
Ctirittian 
Hutic. 


the  resources  of  musical  art  and  science  as  then- 
known  contributed  their  fascination  and  power 
of  emotional  excitement.  Bands  of  frenzied  and 
half-intoxicated  revelers  danced  and  paraded  to 
the  sound  of  flutes  and  other  instruments,  and 
sang  Bacchanalian  and  erotic  songs.  It  was  no 
wonder  that,  considering  the  associations  inevitably 
connected  with  the  popular  music  of  the  time,  the 
Christian  teachers  and  elders  should  have  pro- 
claimed that  "  no  pure  Christian  maiden  ought 
even  to  know  the  sound  of  a  flute."  Those  who 
celebrated  the  pagan  worship  were  as  far  as  possi- 
ble from  purity;  and  this  class  included  nearly 
or  quite  the  whole  Greek  population ;  so  that 
Christian  worship,  accepting  the  ideals  of  its 
founder,  seeking  purity  and  holiness,  not  only 
in  act,  but  in  word  and  thought,  had  to  break 
finally  and  completely  with  heathen  ideas,  prac- 
tices and  associations.  For  the  time,  the  music  of 
the  Christian  churches  must  be  wholly  dissociated 
from  all  music  to  which  the  Greek  proselyte  had 
been  accustomed,  unless,  indeed,  as  may  have 
been  the  case,  they  perhaps  retained  some  of  the 
more  dignified  and  reverential  strains  used  in  the 
worship  of  Apollo  and  of  Diana.  Clement  of  Alex- 
andria, almost  two  hundred  years  after  Christ, 
even  forbade  his  congregation  to  use  the  chromatic 
mode  in  their  singing  during  the  church  service, 
and  there  seems  to  have  been  for  a  long  time  a 
constant  struggle  to  eradicate  pagan  feelings,  and 
the  music  with  which  they  had  been  associated. 

Of  the  real  character  of  Christian  music,  and 
of  its  progress  for  centuries,  we  know  very  little. 
That  the  disciples  of  Jesus  were  accustomed  to 
sing  hymns  in  their  own  religious  meetings,  we 
gather  from  such  casual  remarks  as  that  of  the 
evangelist  in  his  account  of  the  Last  Supper, 


THE  FIRST  TEN  CENTURIES. 


11 


"  And  they  sang  a  hymn  and  went  out."  Doubt- 
less the  melodies  and  hymns  they  had  used  in 
worship  from  childhood  continued  to  be  used  in 
the  new  church  services,  and  it  seems  likely  that 
the  apostles  who  first  preached  the  Gospel  to  the 
Gentiles  introduced  the  same  familiar  music  into 
the  worshiping  assemblies  of  their  Greek  prose- 
lytes. There  is  every  reason  to  believe  that  this 
music  was  purely  monophonic ;  that  is,  it  consisted 
of  a  single  melody  or  voice-part,  without  any 
accompaniment,  either  of  harmony  or  of  instru- 
ments. 

It  lay  in  the  conditions  of  the  time  that  progress 
in  music  should  be  slow.  Little  or  no  attention 
could  be  given  to  it,  or  to  the  cultivation  of  any  art 
or  science,  except  that  of  Theology.  The  church 
had  to  suffer  persecution.  The  zeal  of  its  preach- 
ers found  ample  room  for  its  full  expression  in 
making  converts,  in  establishing  churches,  in  con- 
firming the  faithful,  who  were  often  called  on  to 
endure  martyrdom,  in  answering  the  numerous 
doctrinal  questions  which  the  acute  Greek  intellect 
inevitably  raised,  in  defining  clearly  to  their  own 
minds  their  own  theological  belief.  The  first 
centuries  of  the  church  were  full  of  theological 
disputes,  concerning  the  nature  and  relations  of 
God,  of  Christ,  and  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  These 
disputes  were  in  the  highest  degree  acrimonious. 
Parties  were  formed,  headed  by  leaders  of  oppos- 
ing views ;  and  party  spirit  led  not  only  to  virulent 
abuse  and  blows,  but  to  massacres  in  the  streets 
and  even  in  the  sacred  precincts  of  the  churches. 
The  professed  followers  of  the  meek  and  lowly 
Jesus  butchered  one  another  for  differences  of 
opinion  on  the  most  recondite  and  incomprehen- 
sible points  of  metaphysical  speculation.  No 
wonder  that  they  could  give  no  time  or  thought 


LESSON  II. 


Why  progrest 
WHS  slow. 


12 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


Pope  Sylvester, 
314  A.D., 

etldblifhi's 
singing  schools. 


to  the  development  and  improvement  of  church 
music. 

But  as  church  services  went  on,  and  church 
organization  and  ritual  grew  more  elaborate,  it 
was  inevitable  that,  sooner  or  later,  the  time 
must  come  when  imperfect  music  would  cease 


cce-lo-rumlau  -  -'da-t*  .Da-ma 

FIGURE  1. 


TT-* 


./ 


I'O-'PU   *    "     ••  *    ^a       K1S    ------     »    US 

FIGURE  2. 

to  be  tolerated,  and  when  attention  would  be 
given,  not  only  to  improvement  in  singing,  but 
to  the  increase  of  musical  intelligence.  In  the 
early  part  of  the  fourth  century,  Pope  Sylvester 
started  singing  schools,  the  first  of  which  we  have 
any  record  in  the  Christian  era.  By  that  time 
certain  musical  formulae  had  become  pretty  well 


THE  FIRST  TEN  CENTURIES. 


13 


established,  as  appropriate  to  the  different  feasts 
and  fasts  of  the  church,  and  these  singing  schools 
had  for  their  main  object  the  preservation  of  these 
established  chants.  They  had  to  be  taught  by 
rote  and  handed  down  by  tradition,  for  the  musi- 
cal notation  of  the  time  was  extremely  inadequate. 
There  were  no  means  whatever  for  indicating  the 
length  of  tones,  and  the  staff,  our  present  means  of 
representing  pitch,  was  not  invented  until  almost 
seven  hundred  years  afterward.  The  only  means 
of  indicating  musical  tones  for  singers  were  the 
so-called  "  Neurase,"  of  which  Figs.  1,  2  and  4  are 
illustrations.  They  were  probably  developed  out  of 
the  Greek  accents  and  were  written  over  the  words 
of  the  hymns.  These  singing  schools  were  the  first 
sign  of  growth  in  the  musical  life  of  the  church. 
One  effect  of  them  was  a  strong  tendency  to  con- 
fine the  singing  in  the  church  to  those  who  had  been 
trained  in  them  and  to  discourage  congregational 
singing.  The  latter  was  actually  forbidden  by  the 
Council  of  Laodicea,  held  367  A.  D.  This  coun- 
cil ordained  that  nobody  should  sing  in  church 
except  the  choir  singers  appointed  for  that  pur- 
pose and  assembled  in  their  own  particular  place. 
All  this  was,  of  course,  in  the  direction  of  making 
music  a  matter  of  culture. 

So  far  as  theory  is  concerned,  the  first  recorded 
evidences  of  progress  in  the  Church  is  the  selection 
of  four  of  the  Greek  octave-modes  by  Bishop  Am- 
brose, of  Milan,  and  the  exclusion  of  music  based 
on  any  of  the  others. 

These  were  the  four,  beginning  on  D,  E,  F  and 
G, thus : — 


LESSON  II. 


dotation  of  the 
period. 


Neumte. 


Congregational 
singing 

forbidden  367 
A.D. 


Bishop 
Ambrote,  of 
Milan,  died' 
397. 


14 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  II. 


Authentic 
modes. 


Plagal  modes. 


These  were  afterwards  called  the  authentic  modes. 
These  modes,  or  scales,  were  regarded  as  having 
their  lowest  note  as  a  tonic  or  point  of  repose. 

Gregory  the  Great,  who  was  Pope  from  590  to 
604,  added  to  these  four  modes  four  others,  run- 
ning from  the  fourth  below  the  tonic  of  the  au- 
thentic mode  to  the  fifth  above  it.  Each  plagal 
mode  had  the  same  tonic  or  point  of  repose  as  the 
authentic  mode  from  which  it  was  derived.  The 
following  scheme  will  make  this  clear : — 

1st  Gregorian  tone,  authenic,  tonic  D. 

2d  Gregorian  tone,  plagal,  tonic  D. 


3d  Gregorian  tone,  authentic,  tonic  E. 
4th  Gregorian  tone,  plagal,  tonic  E. 


3. 


5th  Gregorian  tone,  authentic,  tonic  F. 
6th  Gregorian  tone,  plagal,  tonic  F. 


5. 


6. 


THE  FIRST  TEN  CENTURIES. 


15 


7th  Gregorian  tone,  authentic,  tonic  G. 
8th  Gregorian  tone,  plagal,  tonic  G. 


7. 


8. 


_2i: 


I 


"&~& 


-<^- 


It  will  be  seen  that  the  8th  tone  differs  from  the 
1st  only  in  having  a  different  tonic.  These  oc- 
tave modes  still  serve  as  basis  for  some  of  the 
music  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Church. 

Pope  Gregory  made  some  use  of  a  letter  notation, 
but  the  neumse  continued  to  be  used  four  hundred 
years  longer.  The  Gregorian  music  became  the 
standard  church  music.  It  was  fostered  by  Char- 
lemagne, who  caused  it  to  be  taught  all  over  his 
dominions. 

For  almost  nine  hundred  years  the  Church  owed 
such  musical  progress  as  was  made  to  southern 
nations.  The  Italians,  especially,  cultivated  sing- 
ing with  success,  and  taught  it  north  of  the  Alps, 
much  less  successfully,  if  we  may  trust  contempo- 
rary accounts.  But  with  Hucbald,  a  monk  of 
the  monastery  of  St.  Amand,  in  northern  France, 
-came  the  first  faint  dawn  of  a  new  epoch,  that  of 
polyphonic  music.  In  this  field  the  Teutonic  race 
was  to  take  the  lead  and  keep  it  for  about  six 
hundred  years.  Hucbald  began  to  experiment 
with  intervals,  trying  what  would  go  well  together. 
He  got  no  further  than  making  his  voices  move  in 
consonant  intervals,  parallel  fourths,  fifths  and 
octaves,  and  barbarous  enough  these  combinations 
sound  to  modern  ears.  But  his  work,  never- 
theless, stands  as  one  of  the  mile-stones  of  musical 
progress.  It  pointed  out  a  new  direction  for 
musical  activity  and  marked  the  beginning  of  a 
new  era. 


LESSON  II. 


Polyphony 
begins. 

Hucbald  died 
930. 


16 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  II. 


HucbalcTs 
notation. 


Guido  of 

Arezzo, 
about  1020. 


But  the  time  was  not  yet  ripe  for  polyphony.. 
The  first  thing  to  be  done  was  to  improve  the  no- 
tation so  as  to  have  some  means  of  fixing  absolute 
pitch.  Hucbald  tried 'his  hand  at  this.  He  used 
various  devices  and  finally  hit  on  something  ap- 
proximating our  present  staff.  But  he  utilized 
only  the  spaces,  not  the  lines.  In  his  most  improved 
notation  each  space  stood  for  a  degree  of  the  scale, 
and  he  wrote  each  successive  syllable  in  the  space 
which  corresponded  to  the  pitch  in  which  it  ought 
to  be  sung. 


T" 
I" 
T" 
S" 
T- 
I' 


ta 


EcT 


Isra\    / 


ce\ 


etc. 


vere/ 


Solution. 


eto. 


-  oe     TO  -  re 


FIGURE  3. 

About  a  hundred  years  after  his  time,  this 
problem  was  practically  solved  by  Guido,  a  monk 
of  Arezzo.  He  invented  a  staff  of  four  lines,  and 
used  both  lines  and  spaces  to  represent  absolute 
pitch,  just  as  we  do.  Guido  also  improved  the 
method  of  teaching  then  in  vogue,  and  impressed 
himself  so  strongly  on  his  time  that  many  things 
were  ascribed  to  him  long  afterwards  which  really 
ought  to  be  credited  to  other  men  —  men  whose 
very  names  have  been  lost. 

In  looking  back  over  the  ground  we  have  passed, 
what  strikes  us  most  forcibly  is  the  extreme  slow- 
ness of  progress. 


THE  FIRST  TEN  CENTURIES. 


17 


It  took  a  thousand  years  to  get  to  a  point  where 
there  was  a  notation  fit  to  express  pitch  relations 
with  accuracy.  This  slowness  of  progress  and 
the  fewness  of  landmarks  doubtless  grew  out  of 
the  unfavorable  conditions  of  the  time.  It  was 
the  time  of  the  dark  ages,  and  included  that  por- 
tion of  those  ages  when  ignorance  and  barbarism 
most  prevailed.  Imagine  a  time  when  nobody 


FIGURE  4. 

but  the  clergy  could  read  or  write ;  when  printing 
did  not  exist ;  when  the  roads  were  bad  and  un- 
safe ;  when  neither  life  nor  property  was  respected ; 
when  war  and  violence  were  the  rule  and  peace  the 
rare  exception.  We  can  thus  see,  dimly  at  least, 
how  music,  which  of  all  the  arts  owes  least, — noth- 
ing, in  fact,  to  visible  models, — an  art  in  which  > 
everything  had  to  be  invented,  would  lag  behind 
all  other  intellectual  interests. 


LESSON  II. 


18 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  II 


t  ft 


QUESTIONS. 

What  kind  of  music  did  the  early  Christians  have  in 
their  worship  ? 

Why  did  not  the  Greek  Christians  use  Greek  music  ? 

How  long  was  it  before  there  was  any  attempt  at  cul- 
tivating church  music  ? 

What  was  the  nature  of  these  first  attempts  ? 

By  whose  direction  were  they  made  ? 

What  was  their  effect  on  congregational  singing? 

Who  established  the  authentic  scales,  and  when  ? 

Who  established  the  plagal  scales,  and  when  ? 

Describe  the  authentic  and  plagal  scales  (or  modes). 

How  long  were  these  scales  prevalent? 

What  can  you  say  of  the  progress  of  music  for  300 
years  after  Gregory  the  Great  ? 

Who  made  the  first  recorded  attempts  at  polyphonic 
writing,  and  when  ? 

Describe  these  attempts. 

Who  invented  the  staff? 

What  was  notation  previous  to  that  ? 


LESSON  III. 

FROM   GUIDO   OF   AREZZO   TO   THE   BEGINNING   OF 

THE  SUPREMACY  OF  THE   NETHERLANDERS, 

ABOUT    1000   TO   1400. 

THE  dates  which  mark  the  boundaries  of  this 
period  are  only  approximate,  and  are  given  in 
round  numbers  for  the  sake  of  convenience.  Many 
of  the  dates  of  this  and  the  succeeding  epoch  are 
more  or  less  uncertain,  different  historians  giving 
them  differently.  Guide's  most  important  work 
was  done  during  the  first  half  of  the  eleventh  cen- 
tury. He  is  said  to  have  died  in  1050.  As  we 
have  seen,  his  most  valuable  service  to  musical 
progress  was  the  invention  of  the  staff,  a  means  of 
representing  to  the  eye  the  pitch  relations  of  tones 
so  perfect,  that  it  remains  in  use  to  this  day  in 
substantially  the  form  given  it  by  Guido,  and  there 
is  little  or  no  reason  to  suppose  that  it  will  ever 
be  supplanted. 

But  there  was  still  no  way  of  indicating  the 
length  of  tones,  and  until  this  lack  was  supplied, 
the  germs  of  polyphonic  writing,  already  in  exist- 
ence for  a  full  century,  could  not  possibly  spring 
into  vigorous  life. 

For  this  great  desideratum  music  had  to  wait 
another  two  hundred  years.  The  man  who  in- 
vented notes  by  which  to  represent  the  length  of 
tones  to  the  eye  was  Franco,  of  Cologne.  At  first 
he  had  only  two  kinds  of  notes,  a  long  one  (Longa 
F)  and  a  short  one  (Brevis  •),  the  latter  half  as 
long  as  the  former.  The  two  combined  made  triple 
time,  and  he  used  both  the  form  —  »•-'  (Trochee) 
and  ^  -7-  (Iambus).  Double  time  was  not  used 
19 


LESSON  III. 


Notes  indicating 
length. 


Franco,  of 
Cologne,  about 
1200. 


20 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  III. 


Defects  of 

Franco's 

notation. 


until  a  later  period,  and  was  then  considered  less 
perfect  than  triple  time.  Franco  afterward  added 
a  note  twice  as  long  as  the  Longa,  the  Maxima 

(  I) ,  and  one  half  as  long  as  a  Brevis,  the  Semi- 
brevis  (*).  He  also  used  rests  corresponding 
to  their  lengths,  and  thus  mensural  music  be- 
came possible. 

The  worst  of  it  was  that  Franco  unfortunately 
did  not  give  his  long  and  short  notes  a  constant 
and  uniform  value,  as  we  might  naturally  suppose 
he  would  have  done.  He  made  the  lengths  of  his 
notes  depend  partly  on  their  position  in  relation 
to  each  other.  Thus  a  Longa  alone  counted  as  a 
whole  measure  of  triple  time;  but  if  a  Brevis 
followed  it,  the  two  together  only  filled  a  measure ; 
if  two  Breves  followed  it,  then  the  Longa  counted 
as  a  measure  (triple  time)  and  the  two  Breves  as 
another  measure,  the  second  Brevis  being  twice  as 
long  as  the  first.  Thus,  for  example,  the  follow- 
ing passage  F1  •  •  P  •  •  would  read  thus  in 
modern  notation: — 


&£*  —  — 

f 

Eas^ 

$             /51 

&   • 

& 

-»~\ 

All  this  confusion  could  be  obviated  only  by 
separating  the  measures  by  bars  or  by  some  similar 
device,  and  by  giving  each  note  a  fixed  and  definite 
length  under  all  circumstances.  But  this  was  not 
done  for  a  long  time  after  Franco. 

Such  as  it  was,  however,  this  notation  of  Franco's 
was  so  long  a  step  in  advance  that  it  gave  a  great 
impulse  to  musical  development.  Now  that  the 
time  relations  of  two  voice-parts  could  be  accu- 
rately measured,  even  though  the  means  were 
clumsy,  composers  began  zealously  to  write  "  Dis- 
cant,"  as  it  was  called,  that  is,  to  compose  a  second 


GUIDO  TO  FOURTEENTH  CENTURY. 


21 


voice  to  accompany  the  Gregorian  Chant.  The 
latter  was  called  the  "  canhis  firmus"  or  " fixed 
voice." 

The  two  most  remarkable  names  among  the 
composers  who  cultivated  and  improved  the  new  Jean 
mensural  music  were  Marchettus,  of  Padua,  near 
the  end  of  the  thirteenth  century,  and  Jean  de 
Muris,  a  Doctor  of  Theology  in  the  University  of 
Paris,  in  the  early  part  of  the  fourteenth  century. 
In  the  writings  of  these  two  theorists  occur  for  the 
first  time  the  prohibition  against  parallel  fifths 
and  octaves,  which  has  been  an  accepted  doctrine 
of  musical  theory  ever  since.  The  Parisian  Doctor 
was  the  first  writer  to  use  the  word  "Counter- 
point," instead  of  "  Discant,"  a  word  derived  from 
"  punctum  contra  punctum,"  point  against  point, 
or,  as  we  should  say,  note  against  note. 

Philip  of  Vitry  is  also  a  name  of  nearly  as  great 
importance  as  these  two.  These  men,  and  many 
others,  diligently  practiced  the  infant  art  of  poly- 
phonic writing,  and  prepared  the  way  for  the 
Netherland  composers  of  the  next  epoch.  But 
all  or  most  of  their  activity  was  in  the  domain  of 
church  music.  We  must  now  consider  the  secular 
music  of  the  same  epoch. 


LESSON  in. 


about  130°- 


The  strongest  impulse  toward  the  production  of 
secular  music  during  this  epoch  came  from  the 
Crusades.  From  the  end  of  the  eleventh  till  the 
end  of  the  thirteenth  century  the  imagination  of 
Christendom  was  fired  with  fanatical  zeal  for  the 
recovery  of  the  holy  sepulchre  from  the  hands  of 
the  infidel.  Fighting  was  the  main  business  of 
men.  Scientific  investigation  there  was  none. 
Europe  was  in  the  dark  ages ;  men's  impulses  were 
easily  turned  into  the  channels  of  fanaticism  ;  sal- 
vation and  forgiveness  were  preached  as  the  reward 
of  all  who  undertook  the  holy  task  of  disposses- 


Influence  of 
the  Crusades, 
about  1100  to 
1300. 


22 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  III. 


The 
Troubadours. 


slug  the.  Saracen  inhabitants  of  Palestine.  The 
result  was  that  for  two  hundred  years  swarms  of 
men,  of  all  ranks  of  society,  from  all  Christian 
countries,  poured  into  Asia  Minor,  and  there  came 
into  violent  collision  with  a  race  more  highly  de- 
veloped and  a  civilization  more  advanced  than 
their  own.  Their  ideas  were  as  much  jostled  by 
this  encounter  as  were  their  bodies ;  the  mental 
shock  was  as  great  as  the  physical.  Thousands 
who  returned  brought  home  with  them  new  ideas, 
new  and  strange  objects,  and  among  them  new 
musical  instruments.  The  lute  and  the  guitar 
had  hitherto  been  unknown  in  Europe.  The  Sar- 
acens used  also  kettle-drums  and  other  drums  in 
war,  and  these  were  new  to  the  Christian  soldiers. 
The  introduction  of  these  instruments  into  Euro- 
pean music  modified  it  very  greatly,  and,  of  course, 
stimulated  interest  in  secular  music,  since  they 
were  not  adapted  for  the  purposes  of  divine  wor- 
ship. The  Arab  songs,  too,  must  have  had  their 
effect  on  the  Crusaders.  Then  the  conditions  were 
not  only  stimulating  to  curiosity  and  to  the  secular 
imagination,  but  they  must  have  had  a  strong  effect 
on  the  emotional  life.  Absence  from  home  and 
friends,  home-sickness,  disease,  wounds,  hardships 
of  all  sorts,  strange  surroundings, — all  these  tended 
to  excite  and  to  deepen  the  social  feelings.  And 
these  feelings  soon  found  expression  in  a  vast 
quantity  of  secular  music,  in  a  style  hitherto  un- 
known in  Christendom.  With  the  rise  of  chivalry 
came  also  the  music  of  chivalry,  love-songs  ac- 
companied by  the  lute. 

The  most  favorable  soil  for  the  development  of 
this  sentimental  style  of  secular  music  was  south- 
ern France,  especially  Provence.  Here  the  "  gay 
science,"  as  it  wag  called,  found  its  natural  home, 
under  sunny  skies  and  among  a  lively,  pleasure- 


GUIDO  TO  FOURTEENTH  CENTURY. 


loving  people.  It  was  cultivated  by  the  highest 
nobility,  such  as  Count  Willam,  of  Poitiers  (1087- 
1127)  and  King  Thibaut,  of  Navarre  (1201-1254). 
These  noblemen,  however,  only  invented  their 
songs,  and  hence  were  called  Troubadours  or 
Trouv£res  (inventors).  The  songs  were  sung  and 
accompanied  by  assistants  called  Minstrels  (from 
the  same  Latin  root  as  our  "  Minister,"  a  servant 
or  helper).  These  minstrels  were  always  of  a 
lower  social  rank  than  the  Troubadours.  They 
were  not  only  dependents  of  great  houses,  but  were 
ranked  with  clowns  and  tumblers,  being  kept,  like 
them,  for  the  amusement  of  their  noble  patrons. 
This  is  proved  by  the  name  "  Jongleurs,"  applied 
to  them  (from  the  Latin  "Joculator,"  joker),  and 
by  at  least  one  old  picture,  in  which  a  man  stand- 
ing on  his  hands  is  represented  among  the  players. 

Toward  the  end  of  the  thirteenth  century,  we 
find  an  exceptional  Troubadour,  who  not  only  in- 
vented songs,  but  sang  and  played  them  himself. 
This  was  Adam  de  la  Sale,  a  composer  thoroughly 
familiar  with  the  best  musical  knowledge  of  his 
time  and  one  of  the  first  writers  of  four-part  songs. 
He  also  wrote  a  little  operetta  called  "  Robin  and 
Marion,"  the  earliest  specimen  of  comic  opera 
known. 

Although  Provence  was  the  natural  home  of  the 
love-song  as  developed  by  the  Troubadours,  they 
were  not  the  only  ones  affected  by  the  influences 
which  called  it  into  existence.  In  Germany  the 
same  tendencies  showed  themselves  about  the  same 
time,  and  their  manifestation  differed  from  those 
of  Provence  only  as  determined  by  the  differences 
of  climate  and  of  race  characteristics.  The  Ger- 
man knights  and  noblemen,  however,  took  pride 
in  singing  and  playing  their  own  songs  instead  of 
leaving  the  interpretation  of  them  to  dependents. 


LKBSON  III. 


Adam  de  la 
Hale. 


The 

Minnesingers. 


24 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  III. 


The 
MtMertinrjer. 


They  differed  from  the  Troubadours  also  in  that 
they  regarded  the  music  as  subordinate  to  the 
words.  They  treated  the  poem  as  primary  and 
the  music  as  serving  the  purpose  of  intensifying 
the  sentiment  of  it ;  whereas  the  Troubadours 
made  the  music  primary  and  the  words  secondary. 
The  two  styles,  therefore,  often  differed  greatly. 
The  Troubadours,  as  the  Italian  opera  composers 
did  later,  laid  prime  stress  on  the  invention  of 
tuneful  melodies,  whether  they  exactly  fitted  the 
words  or  not.  The  Minnesingers  made  it  their  first 
aim  to  interpret  the  feeling  of  the  text,  whether 
their  melodies  were  sensuously  beautiful  or  not, 
often  using  a  recitative  style.  These  two  opposite 
tendencies  have  distinguished  the  Northern  from 
the  Southern  nations  ever  since. 

The  Minnesingers  played  their  own  very  simple 
accompaniments,  often  on  small  harps  of  triangular 
shape.  They  were  not  always  noblemen.  A  few 
names  have  come  down  to  us,  such  as  Wolfram 
von  Eschenbach,  Walther  von  der  Vogelweide  and 
others  who  were  engaged  in  the  "  Ssengerkrieg  (con- 
test of  singers)  at  the  Wartburg,"  in  1207.  Wag- 
ner has  immortalized  them  in  his  "  Tannhiiuser." 

Beside  the  secular  music  thus  cultivated  .by  the 
nobility,  there  was  a  very  strong  movement  of  a 
similar  sort  among  the  mechanics  and  tradesmen 
of  the  German  cities.  The  impulse  to  this  move- 
ment seems  to  have  come  from  the  Minnesingers. 
The  breasts  of  the  worthy  German  burghers  were 
fired  with  the  same  enthusiasm  and  guided  by  the 
same  principles  as  those  which  inspired  their  high- 
bred compatriots.  They  formed  a  guild  called 
"  Die  Meistersinger  "  (The  Master  Singers)  for  the 
purpose  of  cultivating  music  and  poetry.  They 
were  not  merely  interpreters  of  other  men's  pro- 
ductions, but  were  themselves  creators  of  both 


OUIDO  TO  FOURTEENTH  CENTURY. 


25 


words  and  music.  They  had  different  degrees  of 
'merit  in  the  order,  passing  from  each  degree  to  the 
•next  higher  by  competitive  examination.  Their 
productions  are  said  to  have  been  rather  common- 
place and  of  no  lasting  value ;  but  the  love  of  art, 
.such  as  it  was,  had  such  vitality  among  them  that 
their  organization  lived  from  the  thirteenth  cen- 
tury into  the  nineteenth.  The  last  society  of  the 
.guild  was  dissolved  in  1839.  It  is  no  small  matter 
that  so  much  enthusiasm  for  ideal  aims  should  have 
burned  so  long  in  the  minds  of  men  whose  lives 
were  necessarily  devoted,  for  the  most  part,  to  ma- 
terial interests.  It  shows  the  German  middle-class 
character  of  that  dark  time  in  an  admirable  light. 

The  most  noted  of  the  Meistersingers  was  Hans 
Sachs,  1495-1576. 

Beside  the  consciously  intentional  efforts  at  good 
music-making  above  enumerated,  there  was  going 
on  at  the  same  time  a  form  of  spontaneous  musical 
production  of  no  small  importance.  This  was  the 
""  Volkslied,"  Folk-song,  or  popular  song,  of  which 
there  are  numerous  examples  in  Germany  and 
•elsewhere.  These  songs  sprung  up  among  the 
common  people,  no  one  song,  perhaps,  being  pro- 
duced entirely  by  any  one  man.  They  were  re- 
peated by  one  and  another  as  they  were  heard.  A 
•beautiful  strain  invented  by  one  might  be  repeated 
by  another,  who  would  add  another  to  it ;  and  so 
they  were  passed  on  and  handed  down  from  gen- 
eration to  generation.  Of  course,  only  strains 
which  pleased  many  were  able  to  live  in  this  way, 
and  so  all  folk-songs,  of  whatever  nation,  have  for 
their  prime  characteristic,  naive,  spontaneous 
beauty.  They  are  products,  not  of  calculation  or 
scientific  intelligence,  but  of  the  original  creative 
power  of  men,  the  sense  of  beauty  being  the  de- 
termining factor. 


LESSON  III. 


The  Folk-song. 


28 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  III. 


QUESTIONS. 

After  Guido  had  invented  the  staff,  what  new  improve- 
ment in  notation  was  most  needed  ? 

Who  made  it? 

Describe  the  notes  he  used. 

Explain  the  remaining  deficiencies  of  Franco's  nota- 
tion. 

How  were  they  finally  obviated  ? 

Define  "Discant,"  "Cantus  Firmus." 

Name  three  other  great  musicians  of  the  13th  and 
14th  centuries. 

Who  first  used  the  term  Counterpoint  ? 

What  rules  were  permanently  fixed  by  these  men  ? 

When  were  the  Crusades  ? 

How  did  they  affect  the  minds  and  feelings  of  those 
who  took  part  in  them? 

How  did  these  mental  and  emotional  changes  affect 
musical  development  in  Europe  ? 

What  instruments  did  the  Crusaders  get  from  the 
Saracens  ? 

What  do  you  know  of  the  Troubadours  ? 

What  does  the  name  mean  ? 

Name  some  of  them. 

How  did  they  differ  from  the  Minnesingers  ? 

How  did  the  music  of  the  two  differ  in  principle  ? 

What  do  you  know  of  the  Meistersinger  ? 

Who  was  the  most  distinguished  of  them  ? 

What  do  you  know  of  the  characteristics  of  the  Folk- 
song? 


*to  4A&+A**,  Ifa****.. 


+f,  **  **" 


f     ' 


LESSON    IV.  LESSON  IV. 

THE    EPOCH    OF    THE    NETHERLANDER, 
ABOUT    1400    TO   1600. 

WITH  the  beginning  of  the  fifteenth  century 
came  a  new  and  very  important  epoch  in  the  history 
of  music — the  epoch  of  the  development  and  cul- 
tivation of  the  science  and  art  of  polyphony.  It 
is  commonly  called  the  epoch  of  the  Netherlanders, 
because  Netherland  composers  took  the  most  prom- 
inent part  in  the  movement,  and  were  the  most 
prominent  figures  in  the  musical  world  for  more 
than  a  hundred  and  fifty  years.  After  that  time, 
Italians  and  others,  who  had  learned  of  them, 
shared  their  supremacy,  and  with  the  death  of 
Orlandus  Lassus,  in  1595,  they  disappear  from  the 
pages  of  history. 

As  we  have  already  seen,  the  ground  had  been 
prepared  for  them  by  the  invention  and  gradual 
improvement  of  an  adequate  system  of  notation, 
and  by  numerous  composers,  who  had  tried  their  ™<e  £  b« 
hand  at  "  discant."  Harmonic  knowledge  had 
advanced  far  enough  to  forbid  parallel  fifths  and 
octaves ;  and  "  counterpoint,"  as  discant  was  now 
called,  was  both  written  and  improvised  with  much 
fluency.  The  task  now  before  the  musical  world 
was  to  develop  and  master  musical  materials  on 
the  intellectual  side.  The  emotional  and  imagina- 
tive elements  had  to  wait  until  the  technic  of 
composition  had  been  mastered  and  had  become 
thoroughly  familiar.  Those  who  now  entered 
upon  this  task  were  explorers,  in  spite  of  all  that 
had  been  done  since  Hucbald,  that  is  to  say,  in  the 
past  five  hundred  years.  The  contrapuntal  forms 
27 


What  had 
already  been 


28 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  IV. 


1380-1430.  (?) 


Ockenheim, 
1430-1513. 


were  very  incomplete  ;  the  perception  of  harmony 
was  crude ;  the  means  of v  securing  unity,  variety, 
symmetry,  contrast,  climax,  the  essential  elements 
of  a  beautiful  work  of  art,  were  undeveloped ; 
probably  these  requirements  themselves  were  but 
very  imperfectly  apprehended.  The  perception 
of  these  was  to  grow  gradually  all  through  this 
epoch  of  the  development  of  polyphony.  Remem- 
ber that  from  1400  up  to  the  very  last  decade  of 
the  sixteenth  century,  all  culture  music  was  poly- 
phonic. 

The  first  distinguished  Netherland  composer  was 
William  Dufay,  a  Belgian.  His  contrapuntal 
masses  are  the  oldest  of  the  kind  preserved  in 
the  archives  of  the  papel  Chapel  at  Rome,  where 
he  was  a  tenor  singer.  Both  in  the  progression  of 
his  voices  and  in  the  treatment  of  his  harmonies 
he  is  said  to  have  made  marked  advances  on  his 
predecessors,  and  paved  the  way  for  a  sharpened 
perception  of  what  is  natural  and  fitting,  in  those 
who  were  to  come  after  him.  He  is  generally 
credited  with  the  invention  of  Canon,  a  form  of 
strict  imitation  in  which  a  melody  is  accompanied 
by  an  exact  repetition  of  itself  at  the  interval  of 
an  octave,  fourth,  fifth  or  some  other  interval, 
the  imitative  melody  beginning  some  time  after 
the  original.  These  canons  were  then  called 
fugues  (Latin,  fuga,  a  flight),  because  one  voice 
pursued  the  other.  The  term  "  fugue  "  is  now 
applied  to  a  more  elaborate  style  of  composition. 
Dufay's  sense  of  rhythm  and  of  harmony  was  a 
long  way  behind  what  we  are  now  accustomed 
to,  of  course.  He  was  a  pioneer,  but  he  was 
a  musician  of  great  ability,  so  much  so  that  his 
name  is  used  to  characterize  the  first  period  of  the 
epoch  of  the  Netherlander. 

The  name  of  Johannes  Ockenheim  stands  as 


EPOCH  OF  THE  NETHERLANDERS. 


29 


representative  of  the  second  period  of  this  great 
epoch.  He  built  on  the  foundation  laid  by  Dufay. 
His  canons  are  more  elaborate.  Dufay  had  writ- 
ten them  only  in  the  unison  and  octave  ;  Ocken- 
heim wrote  them  also  in  the  fourth  and  fifth,  and 
is  also  credited  with  the  invention  of  double  coun- 
terpoint. He  wrote  a  motette  in  thirty-six  voice 
parts.  It  is  believed  that  only  six,  or  perhaps 
nine,  of  these  were  written  out,  the  others  being 
canonic  imitations,  all  being  finally  sung  together. 
He  is  said  to  show  a  good  deal  of  natural  musical 
perception  ;  but  his  works  are  mainly  the  product 
of  calculation.  It  was  his  task  as  well  as  that  of 
other  composers  in  his  epoch  to  develop  contra- 
puntal technic.  This  service  they  rendered  most 
thoroughly  and  effectually.  The  intellectual 
world  has  ever  since  reaped  the  benefit  of  their 
long-continued,  severe  intellectual  exertion,  a  men- 
tal activity  which  changed  the  whole  aspect  of 
musical  history. 

Although  Josquin  de  Pr£s  was  born  not  many 
years  later  than  Ockenheim,  he  shows  marked  ad- 
vances on  the  latter's  work  in  the  direction  of  emo- 
tional expression.  He  was  perhaps  not  greatly 
superior  to  Ockenheim  on  the  merely  intellectual 
and  technical  side,  although  he  carried  the  art  of 
counterpoint  so  far  that  it  may  fairly  be  said  to  have 
culminated  in  his  work.  But  he  seems  to  have 
had  a  more  powerful  imagination  and  stronger 
musical  feeling,  and  his  mastery  of  his  materials 
and  of  all  technical  resources  was  such  that  he 
could  give  his  imagination  freer  play  than  could 
any  of  his  predecessors  or  contemporaries.  This 
freedom  and  mastery  of  his  art  was  well  expressed 
by  Luther,  a  great  admirer  of  his/ who  said  of  him  : 
"  Josquin  is  a  master  of  the  notes  ;  they  have  to 
do  as  he  pleases  ;  other  composers  have  to  do  as 


LESSOS  IV- 


1440-1521. 


30 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  IV. 


Prevalent 
disregard 
of  the  wordg. 


they  please."  In  short,  Josquin  seems  to  have 
been  a  genuine  creative  genius,  who  not  only  mas- 
tered easily  all  that  was  then  known  of  the  art 
and  science  of  music,  but  who  had  also  an  inborn 
perception  of  musical  relations  which  others  either 
could  not  see  or  discovered  only  by  the  most  la- 
borious and  painful  search.  This  made  his  creative 
activity  in  the  invention  of  melodies  and  of  compli- 
cated counterpoint "  as  free  as  the  song  of  a  finch," 
as  Luther  elsewhere  expresses  it.  It  is  probable, 
however,  that,  with  all  his  genius,  there  was  a 
good  deal  of  the  pedantry  of  the  time  in  his  work. 
A  man  who  could  take  the  trouble  to  set  the  pedi- 
gree of  Christ  to  music  on  two  different  occasions 
could  hardly  have  been  always  impelled  to  compo- 
sition by  the  forces  of  feeling  and  imagination. 
No  small  part  of  his  work  must  have  been  mechan- 
ical and  artificial. 

It  is  thoroughly  characteristic  of  the  first  three 
periods  of  the  Netherland  epoch  that  no  attention 
whatever  was  paid  to  suiting  the  music  to  the 
emotional  character  of  the  words. '  This  indiffer- 
ence to  truthfulness  of  musical  expression  was 
carried  to  the  extreme  of  grotesqueness.  In  the 
contrapuntal  masses  not  only  were  secular  mel- 
odies employed  as  counter-subjects  to  the  Gregorian 
plain-song,  but  the  words  of  these  secular  songs 
were  also  retained  and  were  interwoven  with  those 
of  the  sacred  office.  And  some  of  their  songs 
were  anything  but  edifying, — drinking  songs,  love 
songs  of  a  decidedly  unrefined  character,  and  so 
on  ;  so  that  while  one  set  of  singers  was  chanting 
"  Agnus  Dei,  qui  tollis  peccata  mundi  "  ("  Lamb 
of  God,  who  takest  away  the  sins  of  the  world  "), 
another  set  would  be  singing,  in  the  vernacular, 
songs  fit  only  for  convivial  gatherings  of  pleasure 
seekers,  and  coarse  pleasure  seekers  at  that! 


EPOCH  OF  THE  NETHERLANDERS. 


31 


LB«»ON  iv. 


JotquMi 
advance  in 


Besides  this,  these  masses  were  named  from  the 
secular  songs  that  were  most  prominent  in  them. 
There  was  one  very  popular  song  called  "  L'  hom- 
me  arme"  "  (The  armed  man),  which  was  used,  text 
and  all,  over  and  over  again  by  different  composers. 
.Nobody  seemed  to  think  of  anything  profane  in 
"  The  Mass  of  the  Armed  Man,"  or  "The  Mass  of 
the  Red  Noses  "  !  As  Dr.  Langhans  has  pointed 
out  in  the  fourth  of  his  lectures  on  the  history  of 
music,  "this  proceeding  was  closely  analogous  to 
that  of  the  painters  of  the  fourteenth  and  fifteenth 
centuries,  who  painted  themselves  and  their  fami- 
lies in  their  ordinary  costumes,  in  the  same  group 
with  the  Madonna  and  the  Holy  Child.  They 
seemed  to  have  felt  such  things  not  as  a  profana- 
tion of  what  was  sacred,  but  as  a  sort  of  conse- 
cration of  the  secular  elements  of  the  composition." 

Josquin  seems  to  have  had  a  sufficiently  strong 
.feeling  for  the  emotional  element  in  music  to  see  "t™nTof  ^ 
the  propriety  of  selecting  secular  melodies  and 
words  as  nearly  allied  as  possible  in  sentiment  to 
the  sacred  words  with  which  they  were  to  be  asso- 
ciated. At  least,  he  sometimes  did  this.  With 
him  the  special,  peculiar  work  of  the  Netherlanders 
may  be  said  to  culminate.  Practically,  the  tech- 
nic  of  polyphonic  composition  was  complete, 
within  the  limits  of  the  tonalities  of  the  mediaeval 
scales.  The  work  of  Josquin's  successors,  up  to 
Ihe  beginning  of  the  eighteenth  century,  was  to 
apply  this  acquired  musical  material  and  musical 
knowledge  to  the  expression  of  feeling,  both 
sacred  and  secular. 

The  fourth  great  name  among  the  Netherland 
masters  is  Adrian  Willaert  (pron.  Willart),  the 
founder  of  a  music  school  in  Venice  which  had  a 
very  wide  and  deep  influence  on  musical  progress. 
.He  was  director  of  music  in  St.  Mark's,  a  large 


32 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  IV. 


Madrigals. 


de  Rare, 

1516-1565; 

Gioteffo 

Zarlino, 

1517-1590. 


church  with  a  gallery  and  an  organ  at  each  end,, 
and  numerous  side  galleries.  Willaert  conceived 
the  idea  of  making  his  complicated  polyphonic 
music  more  intelligible  to  his  hearers  by  dividing 
it  between  two  choirs  stationed  at  either  end  of  the 
church,  in  the  two  organ  galleries.  This  experi- 
ment was  so  marked  a  success  that  he  carried  it 
further,  stationing  separate  choirs  in  the  different 
galleries,  until  finally  he  had  nine  choirs,  each  of 
four  parts,  thirty-six  parts  in  all.  Of  course,  this 
arrangement  made  the  music  incalculably  more 
comprehensible  than  Ockenheim's  mass  in  thirty- 
six  parts  had  been,  given,  as  it  was,  under  differ- 
ent conditions,  and  went  far  in  helping  to  concen- 
trate attention  on  musical  expression. 

Willaert  did  not  confine  his  creative  activity  to 
church  >  music.  His  secular  music,  like  his  church 
music,  was  polyphonic.  He  set  secular  songs  for 
five,  six  and  seven  voices,  according  to  strict  con- 
trapuntal rules.  These  compositions  were  called 
madrigals.  They  were  the  fashion  in  secular 
music  through  a  large  part  of  the  sixteenth  cen- 
tury and  until  they  were  supplanted  by  the  air 
and  recitative,  after  the  invention  of  the  opera. 
Constanzo  Festa  and  Luca  Marenzio  were  among 
the  greatest  of  madrigal  writers.  In  England, 
Morley,  Kirbye,  Dowland,  Weelkes,  Wilbye  and 
Benet  accomplished  much  in  this  field. 

Two  pupils  and  successors  of  Willaert  contrib- 
uted very  materially  to  the  transformation  of  poly- 
phony into  expressive  music.  These  were  Cyprian 
de  Rare,  a  Netherlander  by  birth,  and  Gioseffo 
Zarlino,  an  Italian,  the  first  of  his  nation  to 
rival  the  Netherlander  in  their  own  field.  De 
Rore  wrote  a  vast  mass  of  Catholic  church  music 
for  St.  Mark's  and  a  large  number  of  madrigals. 
His  most  important  service  to  musical  progress 


EPOCH  OF  THE  NETHERLANDERS. 


33 


in  the  innovations  to  be  found  in  his  "  Chromatic 
Madrigals,"  published  in  1544.  Up  to  that  time 
madrigals  had  conformed  their  tonality  to  the 
Gregorian  scales,  which  formed  the  basis  of  church 
music.  But  de  Rore  made  a  much  freer  use  of 
chromatic  intervals  than  had  been  made  before, 
and  thus  greatly  increased  the  expressive  possi- 
bilities of  music. 

Zarlino  succeeded  de  Rore  as  the  director  of  music 
in  St.  Mark's  Church,  as  de  Rore  succeeded  Wil- 
laert.  He  wrote  a  great  deal  of  excellent  music, 
but  his  greatest  fcontribution  to  musical  progress 
was  in  the  domain  of  theory.  He  was  the  most 
thorough  and  original  writer  of  his  time  in  har- 
mony and  acoustics,  and  his  writings  had  a  great 
and  far-reaching  influence  on  musical  intelligence.* 

The  last  of  the  great  Netherlander  was  Orlan- 
dus  Lassus.  The  best  of  his  life's  work  was  done 
in  Munich,  where  he  was  "  capellmeister,"  or 
director  of  church  music.  He  was  a  genuine 
creative  genius,  and  much  of  his  music  retains  its 
interest  and  charm  to  the  present  day.  He  wrote, 
of  course,  Catholic  church  music  and  a  great 
many  madrigals.  Some  of  his  music,  both  sacred 
and  secular,  has  been  republished  in  our  own  time, 
and  is  now  easily  accessible. 

Contemporary  with  Orlandus  Lassus  was  a  great 
Italian  composer,  who,  educated  in  the  principles 
of  the  Netherlander,  surpassed  them  all,  unless 
we  count  Lassus  as  an  exception,  in  point  of  the 
mastery  of  polyphonic  music  as  a  means  of  emo- 
tional expression.  This  was  Pier  Luigi  Sante, 
born  at  Palestrina,  near  Rome,  and  commonly 
called  by  the  name  of  his  birthplace.  He  was 


LESSON  IV. 


Orlandus 

Latsus, 

1520-1595. 


*  For  an  excellent  Recount  of  some  of  his  most  important  ideas,  see 
"The  Nature  of  Harmony."  by  Dr.  Hugo  Riemann,  translated  by  the 
writer  of  the  present  work  and  published  by  Theo.  Preeser,  Philadelphia. 


34 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  IV. 


Council  of 
Trent,  1503. 


27(e  Misaa 
Papse  Marcelli. 


educated  at  Rome  by  Claude  Goudimel,  a  Nether- 
land  teacher  and  composer  of  great  merit,  who 
founded  the  first  public  music  school  in  Rome. 
Palestrina  was  not  only  a  perfect  master  of  the 
whole  science  and  art  of  music  as  practiced  in  his 
time,  but  was  an  original  genius  of  a  high  order. 

Palestrina's  fame  is,  however,  largely  due  to  an 
accident  of  history.  The  Council  of  Trent,  in 
March,  1563,  discussed  the  abuses  which  had  crept 
into  church  music,  such  as  the  complicated  char- 
acter of  the  masses,  which  made  them  unintelligi- 
ble, the  use  of  secular  songs  in  them,  etc.  The 
assembled  cardinals  were  fully  alive  to  these  evils, 
for,  now  that  polyphony  was  fully  developed,  peo- 
ple had  begun  to  feel  the  necessity  of  using  music 
as  a  means  of  emotional  expression ;  moreover,  the 
.success  of  the  Lutheran  movement  in  Germany 
was  attributed,  in  no  small  degree,  to  the  popular 
church  music  introduced  by  Luther,  the  emotional 
effect  of  which  was  very  different  from  that  of  the 
polyphonic  masses  of  the  Catholic  composers.  The 
council  had  almost  decided  to  abolish  all  culture- 
music  from  the  Catholic  Church,  retaining  only  the 
Gregorian  chant.  But  wiser  counsels  prevailed. 
It  was  suggested  that  at  least  one  experiment 
ought  to  be  made  to  determine  whether,  after  all, 
the  highest  form  of  music  known  could  not  be 
made  to  subserve  the  highest  religious  ends.  Pales- 
trina was  commissioned  to  write  some  music,  the 
effect  of  which  should  decide  the  fate  of  Catholic 
church  music.  He  wrote  three  masses,  one  of 
which,  especially  dedicated  to  the  memory  of  his 
patron,  Pope  Marcellus  II,  and  hence  called  the 
"  Missa  Papce  Marcelli,"  may  fairly  be  considered 
not  only  the  culmination  of  the  polyphonic  music 
of  this  great  epoch,  as  regards  all  the  requirements 
of  an  art-work,  intellectual,  emotional  and  imagin- 


EPOCH  OF  THE  NETHERLANDERS. 


35 


ative,  but  also  as  the  culmination  of  Catholic 
church  music  even  up  to  the  present  time.  No 
modern  writer  has  written  any  mass  which  so 
embodies  the  most  characteristic  feelings  of  the 
Roman  liturgy. 

The  success  of  these  masses  was  immediate,  and 
nothing  more  was  said  of  returning  to  the  bald 
simplicity  of  the  ancient  Gregorian  chant.  They 
were  classical  music  in  every  sense  of  the  word. 
Their  form  was  perfect,  their  content  was  noble ;  the 
form  exactly  fitted  the  content  and  the  content  ex- 
actly filled  the  form.  Their  excellence  was  such 
that  they  have  exerted  a  powerful  influence  down 
to  the  present  time,  and  there  are  no  signs  of  its 
waning.  Palestrina's  death,  therefore,  marks  not 
only  the  culmination  but  the  close  of  the  first 
great  classical  epoch.  Among  Palestrina's  distin- 
guished contemporaries  may  be  mentioned  Nanini, 
Morales,  Anton  Gabrieli,  Giovanni  Gabrieli,  Vit- 
toria,  Arcadeldt,  Clement  ("  non  Papa  "),  Waelrant 
and  Lajeune, 


LESSON  IV. 


36 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  IV. 


QUESTIONS. 

What  phase  of  musical  progress  characterized  the 
epoch  of  the  Netherlanders  ? 

What  proportion  of  these  two  centuries  was  taken  up 
with  the  development  of  the  technic  of  polyphonic  wri- 
ting? 

How  much  of  it  was  applied  to  the  use  of  polyphony 
for  emotional  expression  ? 

Who  was  the  first  of  the  great  Netherland  composers  ?' 

Give  dates. 

What  did  he  do? 

What  is  a  canon  ? 

Give  name  and  dates  of  the  second  great  Netherlander- 

What  advance  did  he  make  on  Dufay  ? 

Who  was  the  third  Netherlander  ? 

What  advance  did  he  make? 

What  did  Luther  say  of  him  ? 

How  did  the  early  Netherland  composers  treat  the 
words  to  which  they  set  their  music  ? 

Tell  what  you  know  of  their  mixture  of  secular  with 
sacred  words  and  music. 

In  which  of  them  does  a  sense  of  the  propriety  of 
suiting  the  music  to  the  feeling  of  the  words  begin  to 
appear? 

What  do  you  know  of  Willaert? 

Describe  especially  his  attempts  to  render  complicated 
polyphony  intelligible. 

What  form  of  secular  music  was  prevalent  in  his  time? 

What  do  you  know  of  de  Rore  and  Zarlino  ? 

Who  was  the  last  of  the  great  Netherlanders? 

Tell  what  you  know  of  him  and  of  his  great  Italian 
contemporary. 

What  is  Palestrina's  best-known  work? 

Why  is  it  called  " classical"  ? 


LESSON  V. 

THE   RISE   OF   DRAMATIC   MUSIC,  1600. 

THE  fifteenth  and  sixteenth  centuries  were  a 
time  of  great  intellectual  and  spiritual  activity  in 
Europe.  The  long  night  of  the  Dark  Ages  had 
passed  and  the  dawn  of  the  new  era  had  come. 
Everywhere  there  was  intellectual  and  spiritual 
impulse,  the  thirst  for  knowledge,  the  craving  for 
mental  freedom,  the  spirit  of  free  inquiry.  Men 
chafed  under  the  limitations  imposed  on  them  by 
the  scholastic  philosophy,  the  prevalent  outworn 
theology,  the  current  ideas  of  the  time.  This  im- 
pulse led  to  the  Reformation  in  Germany,  Eng- 
land, Holland,  Switzerland,  and  to  similar  move- 
ments elsewhere.  It  led  also  to  violent  attempts, 
on  the  part  of  those  who  held  to  the  ideas  here- 
tofore dominant,  to  crush  out  the  new  ideas 
and  to  suppress  the  forward  movement  of  mind, — 
to  the  establishment  of  the  Inquisition,  to  bloody 
persecutions,  massacres,  like  that  of  St.  Bartholo- 
mew, the  driving  out  of  the  Protestants  from 
France,  the  crushing  of  them  in  Spain  and  in  Aus- 
tria,— to  civil  wars,  disorders  and  confusions,  out 
of  all  which,  at  length,  Modern  Europe  was  to 
emerge. 

.This  great  movement  of  mind  was  greatly  as- 
sisted by  the  invention  of  the  art  of  Printing, 
which  began  to  exert  a  powerful  influence  about 
the  middle  of  the  fifteenth  century.  Up  to  this 
time  few,  except  the  clergy,  were  able  to  read  or 
write.  Manuscripts  were  few  and  costly.  But  the 
new  art  brought  ideas  within  the  reach  of  every- 
body ;  the  desire  to  read  and  write  soon  became 
37 


LE880N 


the  ground 
ar' 


The  art  of 


38 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  V. 


Gunpowder  at 
a  civilizing 
agent. 


general,  and  a  new  era  of  popular  intelligence  be- 
gan. The  common  people  began  to  feel  within 
themselves  desires  and  impulses  which  they  had 
never  felt  so  long  as  they  had  taken  it  for  granted 
that  those  who  were  their  superiors  in  wealth  and 
in  position  must  necessarily  be  their  superiors  in 
intelligence  also,  and  in  the  power  which  intelli- 
gence brings.  There  was  a  great  increase  in  self- 
respect,  in  hope  and  faith  in  their  own  capacity 
for  improvement,  and  in  their  own  future  destiny, 
on  the  part  of  men  who  had  heretofore  been  hope- 
less and  helpless,  the  mere  tools  and  servants  of 
powerful  masters.  Of  course,  the  early  results  of 
all  this  upward  striving  were  social  and  political 
disorders.  The  newly  awakened  hopes  and  desires  of 
the  ignorant  were  often  extravagant  and  unreason- 
able. They  had  to  learn  wisdom  and  soberness 
by  the  bitter  experience  of  their  own  mistakes  and 
follies.  And  of  course,  too,  those  who  felt  that 
their  own  vital  interest  lay  in  the  preservation  of 
the  ancient  order  opposed  the  new  movement  by 
every  means  in  their  power. 

In  the  political  struggles  resulting  from  the 
irrepressible  conflict  of  the  new  ideas  with  the  old, 
one  of  the  most  potent  agencies  in  hastening  the 
downfall  of  the  old  feudal  system  and  the  tri- 
umph of  the  new  order  was  gunpowder.  It  may 
strike  us  as  strange,  at  first,  that  a  mere  mechan- 
ically destructive  agent  should  really  contribute 
to  the  triumph  of  ideas,  and  to  mental  and  spiritual 
progress.  But  we  must  remember  that  the  most 
determined  efforts  were  made  to  crush  the  new 
movement  of  mind  by  physical  force;  that  the 
champions  of  reaction  had  the  wealth  and  most  of 
the  world's  physical  power  on  their  side,  and  that 
the  victory  of  the  new  over  the  old  must  have 
come  much  later  than  it  did  if  the  invention  of 


THE  RISE  OF  DRAMATIC  MUSIC. 


gunpowder  had  not  greatly  lessened  the  difference 
between  the  weak  and  the  strong  as  regards  de- 
structive and  defensive  power.  Previous  to  this 
invention,  which  began  to  be  effective  about  the 
same  time  as  the  art  of  printing,  the  feudal  lords 
and  the  authorities  of  the  Church  had  matters 
their  own  way.  A  robber  baron,  safely  ensconced 
in  his  impregnable  castle,  perched  on  an  inacces- 
sible rock,  feared  no  one  except,  perhaps,  his  feu- 
dal superior,  or  the  Church,  which  could  inflict  on 
him  spiritual  pains  and  penalties,  even  to  the  ex- 
treme of  everlasting  torture  in  hell-fire.  Com- 
mon people  he  despised  and  trampled  upon  with 
impunity.  Clad  in  their  coats  of  mail,  he  and  his 
comrades  could  easily  subdue  any  number  of 
rudely  armed  peasants ;  his  castle  was  proof  against 
all  possible  attacks  from  them,  and  any  effort  at 
resisting  his  insupportable  tyranny  was  followed 
by  horrible  punishments. 

But  coats  of  mail  were  not  impervious  to  bul- 
lets, nor  could  castles,  which  were  proof  against 
all  attempts  to  scale  them,  resist  the  force  of  can- 
non balls.  Gunpowder  changed  all  the  conditions 
of  warfare,  made  a  weak  man  as  good  as  a  strong 
one  in  battle,  put  an  end  to  the  invincibility  of  the 
fortifications  then  in  vogue ;  in  short,  brought  com- 
mon men  much  nearer  an  equality  with  their  for- 
mer masters  as  regards  physical  power,  and  ush- 
ered in  the  inevitable  downfall  of  political  and 
social  oppression.  Itself  a  product  of  human  in- 
vention, it  did  a  great  service  in  the  cause  of  intel- 
lectual and  spiritual  freedom  and  of  the  mental 
elevation  of  the  race. 

Another  event,  which  seemed  on  the  face  of  it 
to  be  a  retrograde  movement  in  the  world's  progress 
and  a  detriment  to  advancing  civilization  in  Eu- 
rope, really  contributed  much  to  the  great  intel- 


LESSON  V. 


The  conquest  of 
Constantinople 
by  the  Turks, 
1453. 


40 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  V. 


Beginning  of 
the  revival  of 
letters. 


Opera  came 
from   the  study 
of  the  Greek 
Drama. 


lectual  movement  out  of  which  our  modern  civil- 
ization has  come.  This  was  the  conquest  of 
Constantinople  by  the  Turks  in  the  year  1453. 
This  great  Eastern  capital  held  the  remains  of  the 
Greek  civilization  and  the  Greek  literature.  The 
latter  was  as  yet  unknown  to  Western  Europe, 
at  least  in  its  original  form.  Some  Latin  transla- 
tions of  Greek  works  existed  in  Italy,  but  no  one 
studied  Greek,  or  had  ever  read  in  the  original 
the  great  literary  masterpieces  of  the  most  intel- 
lectual race  the  world  had  ever  seen.  Greek 
learning  and  culture  was  confined  to  Eastern 
scholars,  mainly  those  of  Constantinople,  the  great 
Eastern  metropolis  and  intellectual  centre.  Its 
conquest  by  the  Turks  drove  them  out.  They 
went  as  exiles  into  Italy,  carrying  with  them  the 
Greek  ideas,  language  and  literature ;  they  were 
scattered  among  the  Italian  cities,  and  there  sowed 
far  and  wide  the  seeds  which  grew  up  into  the 
Renascence  (or  Renaissance,  as  it  is  more  commonly 
called).  "Wherever  they  settled,  men  became  in- 
terested in  the  great  literary  and  artistic  achieve- 
ments of  the  ancient  Greek  race,  the  Greek  lan- 
guage began  to  be  studied,  the  Greek  epics  and 
dramas  were  read  and  re-read  with  the  keenest 
delight,  the  love  of  knowledge  was  kindled,  the 
love  of  Art  became  a  passionate  enthusiasm,  and 
the  intellectual  impulse  called  the  Revival  of 
Learning  became  an  irresistible  force. 

The  invention  of  the  Opera,  one  of  the  most 
important,  decisive  and  productive  events  in  mu- 
sical history,  was  part  and  parcel  of  this  great 
intellectual  movement.  It  is  one  of  the  great 
turning-points  in  the  development  of  modern 
music ;  it  changed  the  whole  course  of  musical 
history.  But  it  might  never  have  happened  at  all 
if  the  revival  of  Greek  letters  had  not  come  just 


THE  RISE  OF  DRAMATIC  MUSIC. 


41 


as  it  did.  The  invention  of  opera  was  the  direct 
result  of  attempts  on  the  part  of  a  few  enthusiastic 
lovers  of  the  Greek  literature  to  revive  the  Greek 
drama. 

It  happened  in  the  very  last  decade  of  the  six- 
teenth century,  about  a  hundred  and  forty  years 
after  the  taking  of  Constantinople,  when  the 
leaven  of  ancient  Greek  art  and  literature  had  had 
time  to  leaven  thoroughly  the  whole  mass  of  Italian 
intellect  and  to  permeate  all  Italian  culture.  It 
happened  in  Florence,  under  the  reign  of  the  art- 
loving  family  of  Medici,  who  made  their  capital 
for  a  long  time  one  of  the  most  important  intel- 
lectual centres  of  Europe. 

There  was  a  little  knot  of  enthusiasts,  some  of 
them  artists,  all  of  them  men  of  culture,  the  best 
culture  of  their  time,  who  used  to  meet  at  the 
house  of  Count  Bardi  to  discuss  art,  literature  and 
all  intellectual  matters  in  which  they  were  inter- 
ested. They  called  their  society  the  "  Camerata." 
Among  them  was  a  name  ever  since  known  all 
over  the  civilized  world,  Vincenzo  Galilei,  father 
of  the  great  astronomer,  Galileo  Galilei.  Among 
other  matters,  they  read  and  discussed  the  dramas 
of  JEschylus,  Euripides  and  Sophocles,  not  only 
as  literature,  but  as  productions  for  the  stage,  the 
conditions  under  which  they  were  performed,  the 
ideals  of  life  they  embody ;  in  short,  everything 
connected  with  them.  Finally,  it  occurred  to 
some  of  them  to  ask  "  Why  cannot  this  great  form 
of  Art  be  revived  ?  Why  cannot  we  do  what  the  Drama 
old  Greeks  did  ?"  The  suggestion  at  once  ex- 1 
cited  unbounded  enthusiasm,  and  ways  and  means 
were  eagerly  discussed.  It  was  known  that  the 
ancient  drama  was  not  spoken,  but  sung.  The 
principal  characters  used  a  sort  of  chant  with  an 
Accompaniment  of  the  lyre,  and  the  choruses  were 


LM80N  v 


Cam«- 


They  try  to  re- 
vive   the    Greek 


42 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSOX  V. 


The  prevalent 
luck  of  any  mo- 
nophonic  music. 


First  songs  with 
accompaniment 
by  Vincenzo 
(ialilei. 


Caccini  follows 
his  example. 


also  sung.  But  when  the  members  of  the  Camerata 
came  to  consider  the  musical  resources  of  their 
own  time  they  found  nothing  available  for  the 
dramatic  needs  of  soloists.  The  chorus  was  amply 
provided  for,  for  the  whole  culture-music  of  the 
time  was  polyphonic.  They  were  just  at  the  verjr 
culmination  of  the  great  epoch  of  polyphonic 
music,  of  which  the  Netherlander  were  the  most 
conspicuous  representatives, — the  epoch  which,, 
beginning  with  Dufay,  had  developed  polyphonic 
writing  on  the  technical  and  intellectual  side,  and 
had  culminated  in  the  highly  emotional,  spiritual 
and  imaginative,  as  well  as  highly  intellectual, 
compositions  of  Palestrina  and  Orlandus  Lassus* 
The  secular  element,  the  Madrigal,. was  as  purely 
polyphonic  as  the  Masses  of  the  period. 

How  should  the  soloists  be  provided  for  ?  This 
was  the  problem  the  members  of  the  Camerata  set 
themselves  to  solve.  The  first  fruits  of  this  en- 
deavor were  produced  by  Galilei,  who  wrote  a 
number  of  songs  for  solo  voice  and  sang  them  to 
his  assembled  comrades,  accompanying  himself  on 
the  viola.  Everybody  applauded  with  eager  en- 
thusiasm, and  now  others  of  the  society  took  up 
the  matter.  Some  of  them  were  musicians  by  pro- 
fession, and  one  of  them,  Giulio  Caccini,  declared 
war  upon  counterpoint  as  a  "  mere  butchery  of 
poetry,"  affirmed  that  he  had  learned  more  of  the 
true  function  of  music  in  the  Camerata  than  in  all 
his  thirty  years'  study  of  counterpoint,  and  vowed 
henceforth  to  devote  all  his  talents,  skill  and  ac- 
quired musical  knowledge  to  the  service  of  the  new 
ideas.  He  was,  of  course,  much  better  equipped 
for  such  a  task  than  was  Galilei,  who  was  only  an 
amateur,  and  the  solos  he  wrote,  on  the  model  of 
Galilei  s,  fairly  ushered  in  the  new  era  of  mono- 
phonic  sung  with  instrumental  accompaniment* 


J'HE  KISE  OF  DRAMATIC  MUSIC. 


Recitative  in- 
vented by 


Opera  was  now  possible,  for  the  air  would  serve 
to  express  the  emotions  of  tne  principal  charac- 
ters, while  the  chorus  served  to  express  those  of 
several  persons  who  needed  to  sing  together.  But 
an  aria  (air)  involves  sustained  intensity  of  feeling 
for  a  certain  length  of  time,  whereas  there  are  in 
a  drama  many  transient  emotions,  many  mere  sug- 
gestions of  feeling,  besides  more  or  less  dialogue, 
for  which  sustained  solo  singing  is  not  adapted, — at 
least,  not  in  the  form  of  the  aria.  These  parts 
might,  of  course,  have  been  spoken.  But  Jacopo 
Peri,  another  of  the  Camerata  set,  still  with  the  |  Jacopo  Peri 
notion  of  Greek  drama  in  his  head,  all  of  which 
was  sung,  hit  upon  the  Recitative,  a  style  so  well 
adapted  to  its  purpose  that  it  has  retained  its 
place  to  the  present  day,  and  seems  unlikely  ever 
to  be  superseded.  It  is  a  sort  of  compromise  be- 
tween song  and  speech,  a  sort  of  impassioned 
declamation,  partaking  of  the  nature  of  both. 

With  this  invention  the  means  of  producing 
music  dramas  were  fully  completed,  and  Peri  was 
the  man  who  produced  the  first  opera.  He  was  a 
professional  musician,  a  singer  and  an  organist, 
amply  qualified  for  the  work  he  had  undertaken, 
and  his  first  opera,  "  Dafne,"  met  with  the  most 
cordial  reception  in  the  Camerata.  The  words 
were  by  Rinnuccini,  who  also  belonged  to  the  so- 
ciety. The  success  of  their  first  work  encouraged 
them  to  write  another,  and  this  one,  "  Eurydice," 
was  publicly  performed  at  the  wedding  of  Henry 
IV  of  France  with  Mary  of  Medici  in  Florence, 
in  the  year  1600. 

It  constitutes  one  of  the  turning  points  of  his- 
tory. At  the  very  opening  of  the  seventeenth 
century,  just  when  the  elaborate  polyphony  of  the 
Netherland  school  was  at  the  height  of  its  suprem- 
acy, came  this  new  phenomenon,  and  behold,  all 


Pen's  first  two 
operas, 
"Dafne''  and 
"  Eurydice." 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  V. 


of  a  sudden,  the  whole  face  of  the  musical  world 
is  changed.  In  France,  in  Germany,  in  England, 
no  less  than  in  Italy,  kings,  princes  and  noblemen 
took  up  the  new  form  of  art,  and  from  that  day  to 
this  it  has  been  developing.  It  is  a  long  way  from 
Peri's  "Dafne"  to  Wagner's  "Tristan  and  Isolde," 
but  the  germs  of  the  latter  were  in  the  former. 


THE  RISE  OF  DRAMATIC  MUSIC. 


45 


QUESTIONS. 

Give  some  account  of  the  intellectual  condition  of 
Europe  in  the  fifteenth  and  sixteenth  centuries. 

When  did  the  art  of  printing  begin  to  exert  a  powerful 
influence  ? 

What  was  the  effect  of  it? 

What  effect  did  the  use  of  gunpowder  produce  on  the 
mental  life  of  Europe? 

When  did  this  effect  begin  to  be  felt  ? 

Give  date  of  the  conquest  of  Constantinople  by  the 
Turks. 

What  effect  had  this  event  on  the  intellectual  life  of 
Italy? 

What  do  you  understand  by  the  Renaissance  ? 

What  has  all  this  to  do  with  the  History  of  Music  ? 

Tell  what  you  know  of  the  Florentine  "Camerata." 

Which  of  its  members  first  wrote  songs  for  a  single 
voice,  with  instrumental  accompaniment? 

What  professional  musician  followed  this  up  ? 

Who  wrote  the  first  opera? 

Who  invented  recitative  ? 

What  is  recitative  ? 

What  opera  was  first  publicly  performed? 

When  and  where  ? 

Who  wrote  it? 


LESSON  V. 


LESSON  VI. 


Difference  in 
origin  between 
opera  and  ora- 
torio. 


Keeii  of  dra- 
•nifitic  elements 
in  U,f  Clixrch 


Origin  and 
character  of 
these  dramatic 
elements. 


LESSON  VI. 

THE    BEGINNING    OF   ORATORIO,  1600. 

OPERA,  as  we  saw  in  the  last  chapter,  grew  out  of 
an  attempt  on  the  part  of  enthusiastic  lovers  of 
art  and  literature  to  revive  the  Greek  drama.  It 
was  one  of  the  fruits  of  the  Revival  of  Learning, 
a  great  intellectual  movement  which,  beginning 
in  Italy,  communicated  its  impulse  to  the  whole 
European  world,  and  largely  determined  the  course 
of  mental  development  and  of  Western  civiliza- 
tion from  that  time  to  the  present.  Oratorio,  on 
the  other  hand,  was  an  outgrowth  of  the  Church. 
But  it  was,  no  less  than  the  opera,  distinctly  dra- 
matic in  its  origin. 

As  soon  as  the  Church  had  got  far  enough  from 
the  corrupt  Roman  theatrical  spectacles,  which  it 
had  to  condemn  in  the  first  few  centuries  of  its 
existence,  to  be  in  no  danger  from  the  remem- 
brance of  their  demoralizing  influences,  it  began 
to  feel  the  need  of  attracting  and  influencing  its 
proselytes  by  some  means  other  than  its  ordinary 
liturgy  and  its  preaching.  The  common  people 
could  neither  read  nor  write.  They  were  not  only 
illiterate,  but  ignorant.  They  could  not  read  the 
Scriptures  for  themselves,  and  if  they  could  have 
done  so,  the  Church  authorities  would  have  op- 
posed it,  preferring  to  be  themselves  the  sole 
medium,  not  only  of  the  exposition,  but  of  the 
communication,  of  Holy  Writ  to  the  laity. 

The  clergy,  recognizing  the  fact  that  an  ignorant 

laity  were  more  likely  to  be  impressed  by  sensuous 

elements  in  the  liturgy  than  by  those  more  purely 

spiritual  or  intellectual,  soon  began  to  introduce 

46 


THE  BEGINNING  OF  ORATORIO. 


47 


Mysteries,  Mo- 
ralities and 
Miracle-plays. 


Into  the  church  services  a  semi-dramatic  treatment  LESSOIJ  VI 
of  gospel  readings.  One  priest  recited  the  sayings 
of  Jesus,  another  those  of  the  Evangelist,  while 
the  utterances  of  the  disciples  and  of  the  populace 
were  sung  by  the  choir.  After  a  while,  poems 
were  introduced  among  the  settings  of  the  gospel 
text,  especially  in  Passion  week,  and  took  their 
place  in  the  choir  beside  the  other  Passion  music. 
The  dramatic  element  became  more  and  more 
prominent,  and  by  and  by  it  was  separated  from 
the  liturgy.  The  priests  gave  dramatic  represen- 
tations in  the  churches  for  the  amusement  and 
instruction  of  their  parishioners. 

These  sacred  plays  were  divided  into  Mysteries, 
which  treated  such  mysterious  themes  as  Sin,  Re- 
demption, etc. ;  Moralities,  in  which  personifications 
of  the  Virtues  and  Vices  were  the  characters  of 
the  drama,  and  Miracle-plays,  which  dealt  with 
Scripture  stories  and  with  the  legends  of  the  saints. 
In  these  dramatic  representations  in  the  churches, 
no  women  were  allowed  to  take  part.  The  priests 
were  the  only  actors,  taking  female  as  well  as  male 
parts.  They  represented  such  characters  as  God, 
Christ,  Mary,  the  angels,  etc.,  and  they  succeeded 
in  making  the  plays  very  popular.  The  churches 
used  to  be  crowded,  and  these  plays  were  given  sc 
frequently  that  they  formed  a  chief  amusement  of 
the  common  people,  as  well  as  their  sole  means  of 
Biblical  instruction. 

After  a  while  the  churches  could  not  contain  secularization 
the  vast  audiences  which  thronged  to  hear  and  see 
the  sacred  plays,  and  then  they  were  taken  into 
the  open  air.  Temporary  stages  of  great  size  were 
erected  in  market  places  and  in  other  open  spaces. 
Sometimes  hundreds  of  actors  took  part,  and  a 
series  of  representations,  lasting  for  several  days, 
would  be  witnessed  by  many  thousands  of  people. 


\ 


48 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  VI. 


Degradation  of 
them  by  reason 
of  the  secular 
element. 


Laymen,  as  well  as  priests,  took  part  in  them,  and 
secular  elements  of  a  popular  character  were 
mingled  with  those  distinctively  sacred.  As  was 
natural,  considering  the  unrefined  state  of  the 
common  mind,  these  secular  elements  were  often 
exceedingly  coarse,  consisting  of  rude  jests,  and, 
in  great  part,  of  a  jocular  treatment  of  the  devil. 
Old  Nick  was,  indeed,  a  most  popular  character. 
He  was  treated  not  so  much  as  the  impersonation 
of  evil,  as  a  foolish  clown,  whose  attempts  at  harm 
were  always  foiled,  and  who  invariably  came  to 
grief  in  some  ridiculous,  farcical  way.  The  great 
stages  on  which  the  plays  were  performed  were 
often  divided  into  three  parts.  The  uppermost 
represented  Heaven,  the  middle  one  the  Earth  and 
the  lowermost  Hell.  Even  in  our  day  there  is  a 
survival  of  these  miracle-plays  in  the  Passion  Play 
still  given  every  ten  years  at  Ober-Ammergau,  in 
Bavaria. 

With  the  admixture  of  secular  elements  and 
the  admission  of  strolling  actors  and  minstrels  as 
performers,  the  plays  grew  more  and  more  profane, 
until  at  last  the  coarsest  and  most  scandalous  jests 
and  songs  became  a  prominent  feature.  These  low 
elements  even  invaded  the  churches.  At  the 
"  Fools'  Festival,"  a  sort  of  Christian  revival  of 
the  Roman  Saturnalia,  the  churches  were  the 
scenes  of  indescribably  coarse  revelry.  A  "Fool- 
Bishop  "  celebrated  a  burlesque  mass ;  the  censers 
were  filled  with  pieces  of  old  boot-leather,  which 
filled  the  church  with  an  intolerable  stench  ;  dice 
were  cast  and  cards  played  on  the  altar;  the 
priest  invoked  coarse  maledictions  instead  of  bless- 
ings on  the  congregation ;  in  short,  all  sacred 
ideas  and  rites  were  parodied  in  the  most  outra- 
geously profane  way. 

The  "  Feast  of  the  Ass"  was  little  better.     It, 


THE  BEGINNING  OF  ORATORIO. 


49 


commemorated  the  flight  of  Joseph  and  Mary  into 
Egypt.  An  ass,  dressed  in  a  monk's  costume,  was 
led  into  the  church,  the  priest  intoned  the  Latin 
hymn, "  Orientis  partibus,"  closing  each  verse  with 
an  imitation  of  the  ass's  braying,  to  which  the 
whole  congregation  responded  with  an  uproarious 
hee-haw ! 

This  sort  of  profanation  could  not,  of  course,  be 
tolerated  long,  and  the  Church  authorities  frowned 
it  down.  But,  while  the  outdoor  performances 
continued  to  deal  more  or  less  in  low  elements, 
there  were,  in  at  least  one  place,  purified  continu- 
ations of  the  original  miracle-plays,  etc.,  in  sacred 
places.  This  was  in  the  "  Oratorio  "  (the  Italian 
name  for  chapel,  or,  as  we  sometimes  say,  oratory; 
properly,  a  room  for  prayer)  of  a  church  in  Rome, 
where  St.  Philip  Neri  was  a  priest.  In  this  "  ora- 
torio "  he  used  to  preach,  and  in  Border  to  attract 
the  young  people,  he  used  to  have,  at  first,  a  good 
deal  of  singing  before  and  after  the  sermon.  Then 
he  wrote  simple  dramatizations  of  various  Scrip- 
ture stories  in  one  act,  had  them  set  to  music  by 
Animucia,  director  of  music  in  the  Papal  chapel, 
and  gave  one  before  the  sermon  and  one  after  it. 
Palestrina  afterward  wrote  some  of  the  music  for 
these  little  chapel  or  "  oratorio  "  plays.  Neri's 
plan  proved  very  successful  in  attracting  the  au- 
diences he  wished,  especially  as  they  were  mostly 
given  in  Lent,  when  secular  amusements  were  pro- 
hibited. Whether  his  sermons  were  popular  or 
not,  his  musical  plays  were  very  much  so.  Since 
they  were  given  exclusively  in  his  "  oratorio,"  to 
go  to  hear  them  was  to  go  to  the  "  oratorio ;"  and 
this  name  has  ever  since  been  applied  to  that  form 
of  .sacred  musical  art  which  grew  out  of  his  idea. 

The  piece  which  is  accounted  the  first  real  ora- 
torio, probably  because  it  was  long  enough  to  take 
4 


LESSIIN  VI. 


The  origin  of 
"  oratorio." 


Signification  of 
the  name. 


The  firtt  ora- 
torio. 


50 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  VI. 


Difference  be- 
tween the  early 
opera,  and  ora- 
torio. 


up  a  whole  evening,  instead  of  being  a  mere  prelude 
or  postlude  to  a  sermon,  was  simply  a  Morality, 
written  by  a  lady — Laura  Guidiccioni — and  set  to 
music  by  Emilio  del  Cavaliere.  It  was  given  at 
Rome,  probably  in  St.  Philip  Neri's  chapel,  in  the 
year  1600,  the  very  same  year  in  which  the  first 
opera  was  given  at  Florence.  It  was  called  "  The 
Representation  of  the  Soul  and  the  Body."  Among 
the  solo  characters  were  Time,  Pleasure,  the  World, 
Human  Life,  etc.  These  last  three  were  gayly  and 
richly  dressed  at  first,  and  afterward  were  to  be- 
come poor  and  wretched,  and  finally  to  die.  There 
was  a  chorus  and  orchestra,  the  whole  was  acted, 
and  the  performance  closed  with  a  ballet,  to  music 
sung  by  the  chorus.  The  stage  directions  require 
that  it  be  danced  "  sedately  and  reverentially." 

Thus  we  see  that  the  early  oratorio  differed 
very  little  in  principle  from  the  early  opera.  Both 
were  dramas,  both  employed  much  the  same  mu- 
sical means,  solos,  chorus  and  orchestra,  both  were 
acted,  both  admitted  the  ballet.  But  the  one  had 
a  distinctively  moral  and  religious  aim,  while  the 
other  had  not.  So  that,  while  the  forms  of  the 
oratorio  were  influenced  greatly  by  those  of  the 
opera,  its  different  aim  and  purpose  gradually 
brought  about  the  real  distinction  which  exists  to- 
day between  the  two  species.  Oratorio  ceased  to 
be  acted,  excluded  dancing,  and  admitted  only 
serious  and  devout  music. 


THE  BEGINNING  OF  ORATORIO. 


51 


QUESTIONS. 

Did  opera  and  oratorio  have  their  origin  in  the  same 
intellectual  movement? 

What  was  the  movement  which  finally  gave  rise  to  the 
oratorio  ? 

Why  did  the  clergy  introduce  a  dramatic  treatment  of 
Scripture  readings  into  the  service? 

Describe  the  growth  of  this  tendency. 

Tell  the  difference  between  Mysteries,  Moralities  and 
Miracle-plays. 

Describe  the  process  by  which  the  plays  degenerated. 

Describe  the  "Fools'  Festival  "  and  the  "  Feast  of  the 
Ass." 

Who  was  St.  Philip  Neri? 

What  means  did  he  take  to  interest  his  congregation? 

Where  were  his  plays  given  ? 

What  does  the  word  "oratorio"  mean? 

How  came  it  to  be  applied  to  a  form  of  musical  art  ? 

Who  wrote  the  first  oratorio,  and  when? 

Tell  what  you  know  of  it. 

Give  the  points  of  resemblance  between  the  early  opera 
and  oratorio. 

Show  the  lines  on  which  they  afterward  diverged. 


LMSON  VI. 


LE680N   VII. 


Musical  su- 
premacy'of 
Italy. 


English  com- 
potert. 


LESSON  VII. 

GENERAL  SURVEY  OF  THE  MUSICAL  SITUATION 
AT  THE  END  OF  THE  SIXTEENTH  CENTURY. 
CONDITION  OF  INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC. 

IN  the  year  1600  Italian  supremacy  in  music 
had  fairly  begun,  a  supremacy  which  was  to 
continue  unquestioned  for  more  than  a  century. 
Taught  by  the  great  Netherland  contrapuntists — 
nearly  all  of  whom  spent  their  lives,  did  their 
life-work  and  found  their  public  in  Italy — the 
Italian  composers  had  not  only  equaled  but  sur- 
passed their  Flemish  masters.  The  great  epoch 
of  Polyphony,  based  on  the  church  modes,  had 
culminated  in  Palestrina,  and  had  found  numerous 
representatives  in  all  the  leading  cities  of  Italy » 
Venice,  especially,  had  developed  a  school  and 
style  of  its  own.  Since  Willaert's  time  there  had 
been  a  succession  of  organists,  conductors  and 
composers  in  the  Cathedral  of  St.  Mark,  every 
one  of  whom  was  distinguished,  many  of  them 
being  of  the  first,  or  nearly  the  first,  rank.  They 
had  cultivated  the  Madrigal  as  the  form  of  secular 
music,  and  from  Italy  it  had  spread  to  Germany, 
France,  Spain  and  England. 

The  English  madrigal  writers  of  Elizabeth's 
time  were  among  the  best  in  Europe.  The  age  of 
Elizabeth  and  of  Shakespeare  was  the  first  great 
flourishing  period  of  English  musical  Art.  Men 
like  Tallis,  Byrd,  Morley,  Dowland,  Weelkes, 
Wilbye,  Ward,  Bennet,  Bateson,  Gibbons,  Hilton 
and  Bull  ranked  with  the  best  European  com- 
posers of  the  time,  especially  in  the  field  of  the 
madrigal  and  of  organ  and  virginal  music.  The 
52 


MUSIC  IN  THE  SIXTEENTH  CENTURY. 


53 


music  of  the  Anglican  Church  afforded  less  scope  &»*>* 
for  composers  than  did  that  of  the  Catholic  Church, 
and  Puritan  fanaticism  had  operated  to  check  its 
development,  so  that  the  English  Church  music 
of  this  time  was  not  only  inferior  to  that  of  the 
Catholic  Church,  but  also  to  that  of  the  Lutheran 
Church  in  Germany,  where  not  only  had  there 
been  no  unfavorable  influences,  but  Luther  him- 
self had  used  all  his  vast  power  and  influence  to 
make  music  a  most  important  factor  in  the  Prot- 
estant Reformation.  Nevertheless,  these  English 
composers  wrote  many  excellent  anthems,  some 
of  which  are  in  use  to  this  day. 

Musical  matters  in  Germany  may  fairly  be  said   German  mu»ic. 
to  have  followed  Luther's  leadership.     Himself  a 
genuine  lover  of  music  and  with  highly  cultivated  ; 
musical  gifts,  he  was  wise  enough  to  call  to  his  aid  : 
the  best,  composers   of  the   time.     Besides   this,  j 
like  the  Wesleys,  afterward,  in  England,  he  intro- 
duced popular  melodies  into  the  church  services, 
speedily  transformed  and  divested   them   of  all 
unworthy  associations,  set   his    congregations   to 
singing  them  in  unison,  and  made  them  a  great 
uplifting  religious  force.     The  Lutheran  Choral 
became,  and  remains  to  this  day,  the  best  ex- 
pression of  the  true  spirit  of  the  Reformation,  as 
the  Gregorian  chant,  culminating  in  the  masses  of 
Palestrina,  is  the  truest  and  best  expression  of, 
what  is  noblest  in  the  Roman  Catholic  Church. 
Sung  in  unison  by  the  congregation,  in  a  slow , 
and  dignified  style,  the  organ  carried,  as  it  still  j 
carries,  the  harmonies,  and  from  that  day  to  this  j 
the  Lutheran  Choral  has  served  as  a  basis  for : 
-elaborate  contrapuntal  writing,  as  the  Gregorian 
melodies  did  in  Italy  in  the  days  of  the  Netherland- 
ers  and  of  Palestrina.     At  the  end  of  the  sixteenth 
century,  then,  the  Lutheran  Choral  was  supreme 


The  Lutheran 
Choral. 


54 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  VII. 


Prance. 


What  we  ow« 
to  Italy. 


in  the  Religious  music  of  Protestant  Germany,  as 
the  developed  and  ennobled  Gregorian  chant  was 
in  that  of  Italy  and  of  Catholic  Europe.  But, 
unlike  Catholic  Church  music,  the  Lutheran 
Choral  had  not  yet  revealed  its  full  possibilities. 
Protestant  Church  music  was  not  to  culminate 
until  about  a  hundred  and  fifty  years  after 
Palestrina.  It  was  Sebastian  Bach  who  first 
showed  what  could  be  done  with  the  Lutheran 
Choral  in  the  way  of  Art-music,  leaving  behind 
him  in  his  motets,  and  especially  in  his  Passion 
music,  models  not  only  unsurpassed  but  unsur- 
passable— the  admiration  and  the  despair  of  all 
later  composers. 

Spain  contributed  a  few  able  composers  to  the 
age  of  Palestrina,  the  best  known  are  Christoforo 
Morales,  admitted  in  the  Sistine  choir  in  Rome  in 
1540,  and  Tomaso  Ludovico  Vittoria  (1560-1608). 
But  no  music  of  historic  importance  originated  in 
that  country. 

To  France,  also,  we  look  in  vain  for  an  original 
contribution  to  musical  history  at  this  epoch, 
unless  we  count  the  French-speaking  Belgians 
(Netherlander),  such  as  Dufay,  Josquin  de  Pres, 
Clement  ("non  Papa"),  Jaques  Arcadeldt  and 
Claude  le  Jeune,  as  French.  Italy  was  the  great 
intellectual  and  artistic  centre.  We  owe  to  her 
the  great  age  of  Painting,  the  Revival  of  Letters, 
the  development  of  Singing,  and  of  Gregorian 
Church  Music,  the  invention  of  the  Opera  and  of 
Oratorio.  In  great  part,  also,  we  owe  to  her  the 
development  of  polyphony.  For,  although  this 
movement  was  started  and  carried  on  by  Northern 
foreigners,  it  was  in  Italy  that  they  found  their 
public  and  their  proper  field  of  labor,  and  it  was 
in  Palestrina,  an  Italian,  that  their  work  found 
its  culmination. 


ADVANCE  OF  INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC. 


55 


To  Italy,  too,  we  owe  the  highest  development  LMSON  VIL 
of  instrumental  music  at  this  epoch.  Naturally 
enough,  this  development  came  first  in  the  do- 
main of  organ  music.  As  sacked  music  preceded 
secular  as  an  art  development,  so  the  organ, 
used  to  accompany  the  music  of  the  church,  be- 
came fit  for  artistic  purposes  sooner  than  did  any 
other  instrument. 

The  progenitor  of  the  organ  was  the  Syrinx,  or  Earliest  form 
Pan's  pipes,  a  series  of  reeds  placed  side  by  sidei  °/'Aeors°w- 
and  blown  by  the  mouth.  When  a  bellows  was 
invented,  in  the  shape  of  a  bag,  to  be  placed  under 
the  arm,  and  the  syrinx  became  a  bagpipe,  a  step 
had  been  taken  toward  the  organ  as  we  know  it. 
The  next  step  was  to  place  the  pipes  on  a  box, 
and  let  the  wind  into  the  box  from  a  weighted 
bellows.  Such  organs  were  in  use  among  the 
Greeks  two  hundred  years  before  the  Christian 
era. 

The  first  organs  of  this  sort  in  use  in  Christen-  i  First  European 
dom  of  which  we  have  any  accurate  knowledge  organt- 
were  in  the  eighth  century,  though  there  are  said  to 
have  been  some  in  Spain  in  the  fifth  century,  and 
in  Rome  in  the  seventh.  They  were  small,  of 
only  one  or  two  octaves,  having  from  eight  to 
fifteen  pipes.  There  was  no  key-board  at  that 
time.  There  was  a  slide  under  each  pipe,  which 
was  drawn  out  to  make  the  pipe  speak  and  pushed 
in  to  stop  it.  Only  melodies  were  played,  and 
the  player  had  to  use  both  hands,  pushing  in  one 
slide  when  he  drew  out  another.  In  the  ninth 
century  many  such  organs  were  made  in  France 
and  in  Germany,  the  largest  of  them  having 
their  longest  pipes  four  feet  long.  In  some  of 
them,  the  slides  were  operated  by  upright  levers, 
marked  with  the  letters  A,  B,  C,  etc.,  indicating 
the  pitch  of  the  pipes.  By  the  end  of  the  tenth 


56 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  VII. 


Winchester 
organs. 


Improvements 
in  the  organ 
about  1 100. 


century  organs  had  increased  a  good  deal  in  size. 
The  famous  organ  in  Winchester  cathedral, 
England,  had  four  hundred  pipes.  It  had  two 
sets  of  slides,  twenty  in  each  set,  with  ten  pipes 
to  each  slide,  and  required  two  players.  Mr.  E. 
J.  Hopkins,  in  his  excellent  article  on  the  organ, 
in  Grove's  "  Dictionary  of  Music  and  Musicians," 
says  that  this  organ  had  three  sets  of  slides  and  re- 
quired three  players,  a  principal  organist  and  two 
assistants.  This  organ  was  built  in  980. 

The  next  important  step  in  the  construction  of 
organs  was  not  taken  until  about  a  century  later. 
It  consisted  in  doing  away  with  the  slides  and 
replacing  them  by  keys.  These  keys  kept  the 
pipes  closed  automatically  by  means  of  springs,  so 
that  each  pipe  sounded  only  when  its  key  was 
pressed  down.  Thus  the  labor  of  pushing  in  slides 
to  stop  the  tone  was  all  saved.  But  in  the  larger 
organs,  where  there  were  a  number  of  pipes  to  each 
key,  this  action,  though  simple,  was  very  clumsy 
and  cumbersome.  A  key  long  enough  to  close 
ten  or  more  pipes  had  to  be  pressed  down  several 
inches,  sometimes  even  a  foot,  and  required  a  very 
powerful  spring.  This  made  a  very  hard  action. 
As  late  as  the  fourteenth  century,  organ  keys 
were  from  three  to  four  inches  wide  and  had  to  be 
pressed  down  with  the  fists  or  elbows. 

Pedals  were  invented,  probably,  about  1300, 
although  we  know  very  little  about  them  until 
their  introduction  into  Venice  by  "  Bernhard  the 
German,"  about  1445.  Reed  pipes  were  intro- 
duced about  the  fifteenth  century. 

The  mechanism  of  the  organ  was  gradually  im- 
proved until,  by  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century, 
there  were  numerous  organs  with  two  or  three 
manuals  and  a  full  set  of  pedals,  the  action  of 
which  was  practicable  for  polyphonic  playing. 


ADVANCE  OF  INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC. 


57 


Toward  the  end  of  the  century  independent  LE8SON  vn- 
pieces  for  the  organ  began  to  be  written.  Venice  Early  organ 
seems  to  have  been  the  earliest  centre  for  the  pro-  j " 
duction  of  organ  music.  Especially  from  the  j 
year  1566  on  there  was  a  great  development  of 
organ  playing  and  organ  music  there,  especially  in 
St.  Mark's  Cathedral.  In  that  year  Claudia  Merulo 
became  organist  of  the  first  of  the  two  organs  in 
that  church,  and  Andreas  Gabrieli  took  his  place  at 
the  second  organ,  a  position  which  Merulo  had 
held  since  1557.  They  were  both  excellent  musi- 
•cians,  composers  and  organists.  Merulo  was  suc- 
ceeded at  the  first  organ  by  Giovanni  Gabrieli,  who 
•continued  in  this  position  from  1584  till  his  death 
in  1612.  Both  these  men  contributed  much  to 
the  development  of  independent  organ  music. 
Merulo,  particularly,  devoted  himself  to  the 
composition  of  pieces  for  his  instrument,  while 
Oabrieli  divided  his  activity  as  a  composer  be- 
tween organ  music  and  church  music.  Many 
young  Germans  came  to  Venice  to  study  the  orgau 
with  the  two  Gabrielis,  among  them  such  noted 
men  as  Hans  Leo  Hasler  (1564-1618)  and  Hein- 
rich  Schi'te  (1585-1672).  With  Hasler  began 
that  movement  of  German  students  of  music  toward 
Italy  which  lasted  about  two  hundred  years.  He 
went  to  Venice  in  1584  to  study  with  Andreas 
Gabrieli,  and  was  on  terms  of  intimate  friendship 
with  Giovanni  Gabrieli.  Up  to  this  time,  for 
about  two  hundred  years,  the  Netherlander  had 
been  the  great  educators  in  music,  but,  instead  of 
establishing  one  or  more  musical  centres  in  their 
own  country,  they  had  scattered  and  settled  in 
Italy,  Germany,  France  and  Spain.  Their  labors 
had,  as  we  have  seen,  borne  such  fruit  in  Italy 
that  the  predominant  influence  in  musical  culture 
had  now  become  Italian.  Hasler,  and  other  young 


German  flu- 
dents  in  Venice. 


58 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  VII. 


The  Harpsi- 
chord and 
Clavichord. 


foreigners  who  studied  in  Italy,  transplanted 
Italian  ideas  and  Italian  style  to  their  own 
lands,  and  helped  to  make  Italian  musical  influ- 
ence supreme  all  over  Europe.  Schtitz  studied 
with  Giovanni  Gabrieli  from  1609  until  his  death 
in  1612.  We  shall  have  more  to  say  of  him  in  a 
subsequent  lesson. 

By  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century  the  two 
precursors  of  the  piano-forte,  the  Harpsichord  and 
the  Clavichord,  had  become  pretty  well  developed, 
and  some  independent  music  was  written  for  them 
also.  The  Clavichord  is  supposed  to  have  been 
developed  from  the  rnonochord,  an  instrument 
which  reaches  back  into  unknown  antiquity. 
This  instrument,  as  its  name  indicates,  had  only  a 
single  string.  It  had  a  movable  bridge,  by  means 
of  which  the  intervals  of  the  scale  could  be  given, 
the  player  moving  the  bridge  with  one  hand  while 
he  plucked  the  string  with  the  other.  It  was  used 
mainly  for  teaching  the  rudiments  of  music. 
Some  time  after  the  organ  key-board  was  invented,, 
the  monochord  was  provided  with  keys,  each  one 
applying  a  bridge  to  a  different  place  in  the 
string,  corresponding  to  the  intervals  of  the  scale. 
Other  strings  were  afterward  added,  and  the  brass 
wedges,  or  "  tangents,"  as  they  were  called,  on 
the  ends  of  the  keys,  not  only  divided  the  strings 
into  parts,  but  produced  the  tone  by  setting  the 
strings  in  vibration.  The  clavichord  in  this  shape 
was  simply  an  oblong  box,  placed  before  the  per- 
former on  a  table,  the  strings  running  right  and 
left.  The  right  hand  manipulated  the  keys,, 
while  the  left  probably  damped  the  short  portion 
of  the  strings  to  the  left  of  the  tangents.  It  was 
always  a  favorite  instrument  in  Germany,  because 
some  variation  of  power  was  possible,  and  because 
of  the  tremulous  effect  ("  Bebung  ")  which  could 


ADVANCE  OF  INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC. 


be  produced  by  a  peculiar  touch  on  the  key,  the 
tangent  being  held  against  the  string. 

The  Harpsichord  (clavicembalo),  and  its  smaller 
varieties,  the  Spinet  and  the  Virginal,  were  prob- 
ably developed  from  the  Psaltery  and,  perhaps,  j 
the  Dulcimer  (Hackbrett).  These  were  simply 
triangular  or  oblong  harps,  laid  on  their  sides. 
The  Psaltery  was  played  with  a  plectrum,  and  the 
Dulcimer  with  small  mallets  or  hammers.  From 
this  last,  probably,  came  the  idea  of  our  modern 
piano-forte.  The  harpsichord,  in  its  developed 
form,  had  thin  metallic  strings,  set  in  vibration 
by  means  of  stiff  quills  set  horizontally  in  perpen- 
dicular "jacks  "  fastened  to  the  ends  of  the  keys. 
Thus  they  operated  like  the  ancient  plectrum  in 
playing  the  psaltery  and  zither.  A  good  deal  of 
music  used  to  be  written  "  for  the  organ  or  harpsi- 
chord," and  the  latter  instrument  was  used  where 
the  larger  organ  was  not  accessible — at  choir  re- 
hearsals and  in  private  houses.  Tallis,  Byrd  and 
other  English  composers  of  the  Elizabethan  era 
wrote  much  for  the  spinet  and  virginal,  and  the 
virgin  queen  herself  is  said  to  have  been  no  mean 
performer.  The  harpsichord  took  the  leading 
place  in  the  early  orchestras  and  was  played  by 
the  conductor,  as  we  shall  see  in  the  succeeding 
lessons. 

The  Orchestra  was  exceedingly  primitive  at  the 
end  of  the  sixteenth  century.  The  guitar  family 
was  very  numerous  and  very  popular — had  been 
so,  in  fact,  since  the  Crusades,  when  the  German 
Minnesingers,  the  Prove^al  Tsoubadours  and  the 
wandering  Jongleurs,  or  Minstrels,  began  to  use 
them  in  accompanying  their  songs.  To  this  class 
belonged  various  sizes  and  types  of  the  Lute,  one 
of  them  being  called  the  Theorbo,  the  Cithara,  the 
Mandolin,  etc.  The  latter  instrument,  in  various 


LESSON  VII. 


of 


chord. 


The  early 
orchestra. 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  VII. 

Stringed  instru- 
ment*. 


Wood  wind 

instrument!. 


Reed  instru- 
ments. 


sizes  and  types,  remains  in  use  in  Spain  and  in 
Mexico  to  the  present  day.  The  ancient  Keltic 
bards  used  harps  and  a  stringed  instrument  called 
Growth  or  Crowd.  This  was  played  with  a  bow, 
and  is  the  earliest  European  instrument  of  this 
class.  The  violin  class  of  instruments  was  much 
more  numerously  represented  in  the  sixteenth 
century  than  now.  So  long  as  instruments  were 
used  merely  for  accompanying  voices,  the  guitar 
family,  lutes,  etc.,  retained  their  predominant 
popularity.  It  was  not  till  after  the  rise  of  purely 
instrumental  music  in  the  seventeenth  century 
that  this  class  of  instruments  began  to  fall  into 
disuse  on  account  of  their  lack  of  capacity  for  de- 
velopment into  solo  instruments.  Then  the  violin 
family  began  to  come  into  prominence,  those  of 
inferior  artistic  capacity  were  gradually  weeded 
out,  and  the  violin,  viola,  violoncello  and  double- 
bass  were  finally  left  as  the  most  available  repre- 
sentatives of  their  once  numerous  family. 

The  wood  wind  instruments  were  well  repre- 
sented. The  Flute  is  very  ancient  and  existed  in 
two  forms,  the  Side-flute  (Flauto  traverso),  similar 
to  our  own,  and  the  Flute-a-bec  or  Beak-flute, 
blown  from  the  end.  The  modern  flageolet  and 
the  common  whistle  are  really  beak-flutes.  One 
kind  of  beak-flute  or  flageolet  was  called  a  Re- 
corder. There  were  recorders  of  various  sizes, 
ranging  from  one  to  three  feet  in  length.  There 
was  also  a  long,  bow-shaped,  tapering  flute  called 
a  Cornet.  The  early  orchestral  Flute-a-bec  had  a 
mouth-piece  resembling  the  beak  of  a  bird,  and 
this  gave  it  its  name.  The  ancients  had  double 
flutes  blown  from  the  end. 

The  Oboe  (or  hautboy)  is  one  of  the  oldest  reed 
instruments.  Oboes  used  to  be  called  "  waits  "  or 
"  weyghtes."  They  were  also  of  different  sizes. 


ADVANCE  OF  INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC. 


There  was  a  large  bass  oboe  called  Bombard. 
Our  present  large  oboe  is  called  an  English  Horn 
(  Cor  Anglais,  or  Corno  Inglese*).  The  bass  oboe  of 
the  present  is  called  a  Bassoon  or  Fagotto.  The 
latter  name  is  the  same  as  Fagot,  and  comes  from 
the  fact  that  the  long  tube  is  doubled  on  itself 
repeatedly,  like  a  bundle  of  sticks. 

Brass  instruments  had  been  in  use  from  very 
ancient  times.  In  the  sixteenth  century  there 
were  Horns,  Trumpets  and  Trombones  (or  Sackbuts) 
in  use.  Drums  of  various  kinds,  including  the 
kettle-drum,  were  also  in  use  as  military  instru- 
ments. 

As  yet  (1600)  there  was  little  or  no  independent 
music  for  any  of  these  instruments.  They  were 
used  merely  as  accompaniments  for  vocal  music. 
For  example,  Giovanni  Gabrieli  used  two  violins, 
two  cornets  and  four  trombones  in  the  accompani- 
ment of  one  of  his  church  compositions,  written 
for  only  three  voices,  and  in  another  piece,  for 
two  choirs,  he  used  one  violin,  three  cornets  and 
two  trombones.  The  first  oratorio,  by  Cavaliere, 
used  an  orchestra  consisting  of  a  harpsichord,  a 
double  lyre,  a  theorbo  (double  guitar)  and  two 
flutes.  Similar  orchestras  were  used  in  the  first 
operas.  There  was  commonly,  perhaps  always, 
a  harpsichord  or  spinet,  one  or  two  flutes,  and  one 
or  two  instruments  each  of  the  violin  and  lute 
family. 

The  general  situation,  then,  as  regarded  all  our 
modern  forms  of  musical  art,  shows  that  they 
were  all  in  their  infancy.  Polyphonic  choral 
singing  had  attained  a  high  pitch  of  perfection. 
Solo  singing  was  yet  to  be  developed,  to  meet  the 
demands  of  the  opera.  Instrumental  solo  per- 
formances were  hardly  thought  of.  The  orchestra 
was  barely  beginning  the  first  experiments  in  the 


LESSON  VII. 


Brass  instru- 
ments. 


Early  orchet- 

tras. 


Summary. 


62 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


L«SSON   VII. 


combination  of  instruments.  The  organ  alone 
was  starting  on  its  independent  career  as  a  solo 
instrument,  followed,  at  some  little  distance,  by 
the  harpsichord  and  the  clavichord.  All  the  great 
departments  of  the  art  of  music  were  to  be  de- 
veloped separately  and  in  combination.  .How 
much  of  this  was  done  in  the  century  to  the 
threshold  of  which  we  have  now  come,  we  shall 
presently  see. 


ADVANCE  OF  INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC. 


63 


QUESTIONS. 

About  what  time  did  Italian  supremacy  in  music  begin? 

Compare  the  condition  of  musical  matters  in  Italy, 
England,  Germany,  France  and  Spain  about  the  year 
1600. 

What  great  factors  in  modern  intellectual  life  do  we 
owe  to  Italy  ? 

What  was  the  earliest  precursor  of  the  organ  ? 

Describe  the  first  European  organs. 

Describe  the  Winchester  Cathedral  organ. 

What  great  improvement  was  made  in  the  action  of 
the  organ  about  1100? 

Describe  the  organ  actions  of  the  12th  and  13th  cen- 
turies. 

When  were  pedals  invented? 

When  reed  pipes? 

Name  some  of  the  great  Venetian  organists  of  the 
latter  part  of  the  16th  century. 

Name  Germans  who  studied  in  Venice. 

Describe  the  Harpsichord  and  the  Clavichord,-  and 
give  their  origin. 

What  kind  of  orchestra  was  used  to  accompany  the 
•early  operas  and  oratorios  ? 

What  is  the  difference  between  a  Jlute-a-bec  and  a 
jlauto  traverso  1 

What  were  Recorders? 

Bombards? 

Cornets? 

How  many  different  classes  of  instruments  are  men- 
tioned as  in  use  in  the  16th  century? 

Mention  some  of  those  belonging  to  the  guitar  family. 


LESSON  VII. 


LKSSON  TIIL 


Italian  opera. 


Itt  development 
in  Venice. 


LESSON  VIII. 

THE  PROGRESS  OF  OPERA. 

HAVING  now  given  a  general  outline  of  the  mu- 
sical situation  at  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century, 
our  next  task  must  be  to  trace  the  development  of 
musical  art,  along  its  various  lines  during  the 
seventeenth  century,  up  to  the  beginning  of  the 
life-work  of  Bach  and  Haendel. 

Dramatic  music  will  claim  our  attention  first, 
as  the  most  important  musical  phenomenon  of  the 
early  part  of  the  century.  Opera,  as  we  have 
seen,_was  invented  in  Florence.  But  while  the 
Florentine  musicianszealbusly  cultivated  the  new 
form  of  musical  art,  it  was  in  Venice  that  the 
most  important  development  of  the  opera  took 
place  during  the  early  part  of  the  seventeenth 
century.  The  conditions  in  Venice  were  particu- 
larly favorable  for  the  development  of  secular  and 
especially  of  dramatic  music.  Venice  was  an  iso- 
lated, wealthy,  commercial  republic.  She  had 
suffered  less  than  any  other  Italian  city  from  the 
political  confusion  of  the  time ;  her  wealth  gave 
her  citizens  leisure  for  mental  cultivation;  her 
commercial  intercourse  with  the  Orient  had  broad- 
ened her  ideas,  introduced  new  elements  of  culture, 
and  made  her  more  a  cosmopolitan  city  than  any 
other  in  Europe.  Then  she  had  a  great  school  of 
first-class  musicians  who  were  already  attracting 
disciples  from  the  north  side  of  the  Alps.  These 
musicians  were  independent,  original  and  pro- 
gressive. Zarlino  had  discovered  important  prin- 
ciples in  harmony,  the  value  of  which  is  only,  in 
our  own  day,  beginning  to  be  appreciated.  The 
64 


THE  PROGRESS  OF  OPERA. 


65 


two  Gabrielis,  and,  for  that  matter,  all  the  com- 
posers of  the  Venetian  school  from  Willaert 
down,  had  given  their  church  music  and  madri- 
gals a  more  dramatic  coloring  and  a  freer  emo- 
tional and  imaginative  treatment  than  anybody 
else.  The  immediate  successor  of  the  Gabrielis 
was  to  render  the  infant  opera  its  greatest  service. 
This  was  Claudio  Monteverde.  He  was  born  at 
Cremona  in  1568,  and  was  director  of  music  at 
St.  Mark's  for  thirty  years,  from  1613  till  his 
death,  in  1643.  From  the  beginning  of  his  career 
as  a  musician,  before  he  went  to  Venice,  he  had 
striven  to  make  his  compositions  as  expressive  as 
possible.  With  him  the  vivid  expression  of  feel- 
ing was  the  first  aim  of  composition.  To  this  end 
he  used  without  hesitation  means  unknown  to  or 
forbidden  by  the  theorists  of  his  time.  He  was 
the  first  to  use  the  dominant-seventh  without  prep- 
aration. He  used  the  ninth,  and  even  the  aug- 
.  men  ted  fourth,  in  the  same  way,  and  he  was  the 
first  composer  to  use  the  diminished  seventh 
chord.  As  in  the  case  of  every  composer  of  orig- 
inal genius,  Monteverde's  innovations  met  with 
severe  criticism  and  violent  opposition  from  the 
pedantic  theorists  of  his  day.  But  they  have  been 
accepted  and  incorporated  into  all  our  modern 
music-thinking.  So  has  one  of  his  innovations  in 
the  use  of  the  violin.  He  was  the  first  to  employ 
the  tremolo,  now  in  common  use,  as  a  means  of 
expressing  agitated,  passionate  feeling.  This,  also, 
was  treated  by  many  of  his'  contemporaries  with 
ridicule  and  contempt,  but  the  result  has  shown 
that  Monteverde  was  right. 

Active  as  he  was  in  employing  all  the  harmonic 
and  orchestral  resources  of  his  time,  and  in  invent- 
ing new  ones  for  the  purpose  of  dramatic  expression, 
he  was  just  the  man  to  do  for  the  newly-invented 
5 


LE680N  VIII. 


Monteverde^ 
1568-1643. 


His  innovations. 


66 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LWSON  VIII. 


firit  public 
optra  houie 
built  in  Venice. 


OavaUi,  1599- 
1676. 


opera  what  nobody  else  could.  In  1607  he  pro- 
duced his  first  opera  in  Mantua,  where  he  was  then 
director  of  music,  and  he  wrote  at  least  two  more 
before  he  went  to  Venice.  In  the  latter  city  he 
continued  his  career  as  an  operatic  composer. 
In  these  works  he  embodied  his  ripest  ideas 
on  the  art  of  composition  and  of  musical  expres- 
sion, and  his  work  marks  an  era  in  musical 
history. 

It  was  doubtless  due,  in  great  part,  to  the  stimu- 
lus of  his  example  that  operatic  composition  was 
so  widely  and  so  successfully  cultivated  in  Venice. 
During  his  time  the  first  public  opera  house  was 
built  in  Venice.  This  was  an  epoch-making 
event,  for  it  marks  the  beginning  of  opera  as  a 
public  entertainment,  whereas  elsewhere  it  con- 
tinued to  be,  for  a  long  time,  exclusively  the  prop- 
erty of  princes  and  nobles,  who  used  it  on  festal 
occasions  for  the  entertainment  of  their  guests.  In 
Venice  it  was  a  popular  matter,  not  a  court  affair. 
So  popular  was  it  that  other  opera  houses  were 
built,  and  before  the  year  1734  some  four  hundred 
operas  by  forty  different  composers  had  been  pub- 
licly performed  in  Venice !  This  date  takes  us 
somewhat  beyond  the  boundaries  set  for  the  pres- 
ent lesson,  but  it  seemed  necessary  to  make  the 
statement.  One  more  brief  remark,  and  we  have- 
done  with  Venice  for  the  present.  Cavalli,  who 
became  Monte verde's  successor  at  St.  Mark's  in 
1668,  must  be  mentioned  as  the  one  Venetian 
composer,  after  Monteverde,  who  contributed  essen- 
tially to  the  development  of  the  dramatic  style. 
He  won  a  reputation  which  extended  far  beyond 
the  bounds  of  Italy.  After  his  time,  opera  in 
Venice  began  to  emphasize  the  sensuous  rather 
than  the  dramatic  element,  and  with  this  change 
began  its  degeneration  and  downfall. 


THE  PROGRESS  OF  OPERA. 


67 


LESSON  VIII. 


outside  of  Italy. 

H.  Schtltz, 
1585-1672. 


The  newly-invented  opera,  or  newly-revived 
Greek  drama,  as  it  was  then  supposed  to  be,  was  Italian  opera 
speedily  introduced  into  Germany.  The  first 
German  to  do  this  was  Heinrich  Schutz  (1585- 
1672),  referred  to  in  the  last  lesson  as  a  student 
under  Gabrieli  in  Venice.  It  happened  in  this 
way  :  In  the  year  1627  the  Elector  John  George 
I  of  Saxony  gave  his  daughter  in  marriage  to  the 
Landgrave  of  Hesse-Darmstadt.  As  the  latter  was 
a  highly-educated  and  cultivated  man,  the  elector 
wished  to  offer  him  some  entertainment  worthy  of 
his  intellectual  and  refined  tastes.  So  it  occurred 
to  him  to  give  a  performance  of  Peri's  first  opera, 
"  Dafne."  He  ordered  Schutz,  his  court  director 
of  music,  to  prepare  it  and  give  it  in  the  German 
language,  designating  Martin  Opitz,  the  poet,  as  the 
translator  of  Rinuccini's  text.  But  when  the  trans- 
lation was  made,  it  would  not  fit  Peri's  music.  So 
Schutz  himself  set  the  German  words  to  music 
and  composed  the  first  opera  ever  written  in  Ger- 
many. Although  written  by  a  German,  it  was,  to 
all  intents  and  purposes,  an  Italian  opera ;  for 
Schutz  was  in  full  sympathy  with  the  Italian  ideas 
he  had  imbibed  in  Venice.  A  long  time  was  to 
elapse  before  German  opera  composers  were  to 
develop  a  national  style.  One  reason  of  this  was 
the  political  and  social  confusion  caused  by  the 
dreadful  thirty  years'  war  (1618-1648),  which 
effectually  prevented  Schutz  from  following  up  his 
first  attempt  in  this  line.  He  never  wrote  a  second 
opera. 

In  1662  an  Italian  opera  house  was  established  IM™n  °P,era 

•       I-.          i  .,i  T,     i-  t  i  T      i'  established  in 

in  Dresden,  with  an  Italian  conductor  and  Italian   Dr««d«i,  1662 
singers,  and  here  Italian  operas  were  given  in  the 
Italian  language,  under   court  patronage,   until 
about  the  end  of  the  first  quarter  of  the  nineteenth 
century.     What  was  true  of  Dresden  was  true  of 


e  first  written 
in  Germany. 


68 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  VIII. 


Engliih  opera 
composers  of 
this  period. 


Hamburg;  her 
character  and 
musical  life. 


nearly  or  quite  every  court  in  Germany.  If  Ger- 
man composers  were  employed,  they  had  to  write 
music  in  the  Italian  style  to  Italian  words.  In 
short,  Italian  opera  became  the  fashion,  and,  as  in 
the  case  of  most  fashionable  things,  so  long  as 
the  craze  lasted,  no  other  style,  however  meritori- 
ous, had  any  chance  of  success.  In  England,  also, 
Italian  opera  became  the  fashion.  The  one  Eng- 
lish composer  acknowledged  as  of  first  rank  dur- 
ing this  century  was  Henry  Purcell  (1658-1695). 
He  wrote  a  very  considerable  number  of  operas, 
but  they  were  in  no  way  distinguishable,  as  regards 
style,  from  the  contemporary  Italian  operas  on 
which  they  were  modeled.  Two  other  English 
opera  composers  of  this  century  achieved  a  good 
reputation  in  their  own  country,  Matthew  Lock 
(1620-1677),  and  John  Eccles,  born  about  the 
same  time  as  Lock. 

In  Germany,  Hamburg  formed  an  exception  to 
the  prevalent  Italian  style.  This  grew  out  of  the 
fact  that  Hamburg  was  a  free  commercial  city, 
and  also,  being  far  removed  from  the  scene  of 
the  thirty  years'  war,  had  suffered  less  than 
her  neighbors.  These  two  circumstances,  as  in 
the  case  of  Venice,  enabled  her  to  develop  an  indi- 
vidual life  of  her  own,  and  caused  her  music  to 
take  on  a  peculiar  character,  different  from  that 
of  the  rest  of  Germany.  Here,  as  in  Venice, 
church  music  was  greatly  influenced  by  the  dra- 
matic style,  and  the  opera,  very  naturally,  was 
from  the  start  more  characteristically  German 
than  Italian.  However,  no  real  development  of 
German  opera  came  out  of  this  promising  begin- 
ning. Unfortunately,  the  writers  of  opera  texts 
there,  as  elsewhere,  seemed  unable  to  choose  any 
other  than  classical  subjects,  and  as  the  masses 
who  patronized  the  opera  had  no  sympathy  with 


THE  PROGRESS  OF  OPERA. 


69 


Why  German 
opera  was  not 
developed  theref 


Greek  mythology,  and  no  acquaintance  with  the  LESSON  VI11 
Greek  literature  from  which  these  subjects  were 
taken,  they  cared  nothing  at  all  for  that  kind  of 
musical  drama.  There  was  no  court  to  support 
the  opera ;  success  depended  on  attracting  full 
houses,  necessarily  made  up,  in  great  part,  of  un- 
cultivated people ;  and  so  the  managers  resorted 
to  spectacular  attractions  and  depended  for  their 
patronage  mainly  on  scenic  accessories.  Of  course, 
this  was  fatal  to  the  development  and  realization 
of  all  high  artistic  ideals,  and  opera  here,  as  later 
in  Venice,  degenerated.  Decay  set  in,  in  fact, 
not  only  before  operatic  endeavor  had  borne  any 
ripe  fruit,  but  almost  before  there  had  begun  to  be 
any  fruit  at  all.  A  considerable  improvement 
took  place,  however,  at  the  end  of  the  century, 
the  results  of  which  we  shall  trace  in  the  next 
lesson. 

Italian  opera  made  its  first  appearance  in 
France  in  the  year  1645,  when  Cardinal  Mazarin 
procured  a  company  of  Italian  opera  singers  for 
the  entertainment  of  the  queen,  Anne  of  Austria. 
It  is  said,  however,  that  opera,  as  performed  by 
this  company,  failed  to  meet  the  demands  of  French 

rrii        r\  i  T      i  '        i  f  ii          opera  tailed  to 

taste.  Ihe  r  rench  applied  to  it  the  canons  01  the  ;  please  French 
drama  as  it  had  been  developed  by  their  great 
classical  dramatists,  Corneille  and  Moliere,  who 
had  already  done  much  toward  refining  French 
taste  in  dramatic  art.  Measured  by  these  stand- 
ards, the  Italian  opera  of  that  time  was  faulty 
and  defective.  Although  it  had  originated  in  an 
enthusiastic  attempt  to  revive  the  Greek  drama, 
the  tendency  to  develop  its  musical  forms,  and  to 
invent  sensuously  pleasing  melodies  at  the  cost  of 
dramatic  truthfulness,  had  speedily  shown  itself. 
Besides  this,  the  Italian  opera,  as  represented  in 
France,  aimed  to  produce  effects  largely  by  means 


French  opera. 


Whi/  Italian 


70 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  VIII. 


Obstacles  in  the 
way  of  French 
opera. 


Perrin,  1620- 
1675. 


His  lyric  poems. 


of  decorations,  scenic  accessories,  etc.,  instead  of 
depending  mainly  on  a  vivid  and  forcible  dramatic 
presentation  of  a  well-constructed  play.  All  this 
hindered  the  success  of  Italian  opera  among  the 
cultivated  classes  in  France  much  more  than  it 
did  in  Germany,  where  the  dramatic  sense  was 
much  less  advanced,  and  where,  indeed,  the  natu- 
ral turn  for  the  drama,  and  natural  tact  and  per- 
ception in  dramatic  matters,  were  far  less  marked 
than  among  the  French. 

But  the  introduction  of  opera  into  France 
created  a  desire  among  Frenchmen  to  produce  a 
musical  drama  of  their  own  more  in  accord  with 
their  dramatic  ideals.  The  chief  obstacle  to  this 
was  found  to  lie  in  the  fact  that  French  poetry, 
as  it  then  existed,  was  wholly  unsuited  to  musical 
treatment.  There  were  at  that  time  no  free  lyric 
forms  in  the  French  literature,  such  as  would 
give  a  composer  free  scope  for  his  imagination  in 
setting  them  to  music;  and  the  worst  of  it  was, 
that  the  iambic  line  of  six  feet,  interrupted  by  a 
csesura,  unfit  as  it  was  for  the  purpose  of  an  ope- 
ratic composer,  was  considered  by  the  poets  and 
critics  of  the  day  as  the  only  poetic  form  worthy 
of  a  place  in  literature. 

The  first  man  who  had  the  courage  to  break 
through  this  literary  superstition,  and  to  write 
lyric  verses  suitable  for  music,  in  defiance  of  the 
traditions  of  the  elders,  was  the  Abbe  Perrin.  He 
first  published  a  collection  of  poems,  irregular  in 
form,  freely  adapting  themselves  to  the  varying 
moods  of  the  poet  and  avowedly  intended  to  lend 
themselves  to  the  purposes  of  imaginative  musical 
composition.  They  were  violently  opposed,  of 
course,  by  the  pedantic  literary  critics,  and  as 
violently  defended  on  the  side  of  the  musicians, 
!  who  saw  in  them  the  possibility  of  a  national  lyric 


THE  PROGRESS  OF  OPERA. 


71 


drama  hitherto  unattainable.  A  professional  or- 
ganist named  Robert  Cambert,  at  that  time  the 
most  prominent  composer  in  France,  soon  set 
some  of  his  songs  to  music,  and  very  soon  after  this 
the  two  combined  to  produce  a  comic  operetta 
called  "  Pastorale."  This  was  given  for  the  first 
time  in  the  year  1659.  It  made  a  great  success, 
in  spite  of  the  fact  that  it  was  given  purposely 
without  any  of  those  splendid  scenic  accessories 
which  the  Italian  party  in  Paris  was  employing 
to  dazzle  the  eyes  of  the  public.  But  as  there 
was,  of  course,  there,  as  everywhere,  a  considerable 
number  of  those  who  preferred  tawdry  glitter  to 
solid  artistic  qualities,  the  new  French  opera 
did  not  make  its  way  as  rapidly  as  its  friends  de- 
sired. However,  Perrin  and  Cambert  worked  on 
energetically,  and  in  1669  they  obtained  of  King 
Louis  XIV  the  exclusive  privilege  for  twelve 
years  of  giving  operas,  not  only  in  Paris  but  in 
all  the  cities  of  France.  They  formed  a  stock 
company  and  built  an  opera  house,  opening  it 
with  a  new  opera  of  their  own,  "  Pomona,"  which 
ran  for  eight  months  and  netted  Perrin  alone 
about  $6000.  It  is  said,  however,  to  have  been 
inferior  in  every  way  to  their  first  work.  Feeling 
the  necessity  of  competing  with  the  Italian  opera 
in  showy  decorations,  they  laid  more  stress  on 
/these  than  on  the  artistic  quality  of  their  new 
work,  and  by  these  means  achieved  a  great  popu- 
lar success.  The  consequence  was  that  they  ac- 
complished very  little  for  real  French  opera  in  the 
four  years  during  which  they  held  their  operatic 
monopoly.  Their  real  service  lay  in  the  decisive 
first  step  of  Perrin  in  the  matter  of  lyric  poetry, 
and  in  the  impulse  given  by  their  first  combined 
effort  in  opera. 

"We  now  come  to  one  of  the  great  names  in  the 


LESSON  VIII. 


Cambert, 
1628-1677. 


Kit  fir ft 
operetta. 


Work  of  Perrin 
and  Cambert. 


72 


LESSONS  IAT  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  VIII. 


LuUy,  1633- 
1687 


He  buys  the 
opera  monopoly 
from  Perrin 
and  Oamberl, 
1672. 

importance  of 
his  work. 


history  of  French  opera,  and,  for  that  matter,  of 
opera  in  general,  the  name  of  Giovanni  JBattista 
Lully,  who  succeeded  to  the  monopoly  of  opera  in 
France  in  the  year  1672.  For  two  hundred  years, 
now,  it  has  been  affirmed  that  he  robbed  Perrin 
I  and  Cambert  of  their  privilege  by  means  of  the 
basest  intrigue.  It  has  even  been  affirmed  that 
he  poisoned  Cambert,  several  years  after  he 
cheated  him  out  of  his  rights.  He  has  always 
been  represented  as  a  smart,  shrewd,  unscrupulous 
courtier,  who,  coming  to  Paris  as  a  youngster, 
pushed  his  way  up  from  a  menial  position  in  the 
household  of  Mme.  de  Montpensier,  the  king's 
niece,  to  that  of  a  special  favorite  of  the  king 
himself.  He  is  said  to  have  used  the  power  thus 
acquired  in  the  most  odious  way,  treating  the 
noblest  men  of  his  time  with  contempt  and  con- 
tumely, and  filling  his  own  pockets  at  the  expense 
of  others.  However  this  may  be,  late  researches 
in  the  French  archives  seem  to  make  it  clear  that 
he  bought  the  opera  monoply  of  Perrin  and  Cam- 
bert instead  of  stealing  it  from  them. 

Whatever  else  may  be  doubtful,  it  is  certain 
that,  although  an  Italian  by  birth,  he  succeeded 
in  doing  for  French  national  grand  opera  what 
Perrin  and  Cambert  had  failed  to  do.  Associating 
himself  with  the  poet  Quinault,  who  wrote  the 
poems  for  his  operas,  he  created,  within  the  next 
fifteen  years  (he  died  in  1687),  a  large  number  of 
music  dramas  so  vigorous  in  conception,  so  full  of 
powerful  rhetorical  declamation,  so  dramatically 
truthful — in  short,  so  fully  in  accord  with  the 
highest  French  ideals — that  they  kept  their  place 
on  the  stage  for  almost  a  whole  century  after  his 
death.  Considered  as  music,  his  operas  were  infe- 
rior to  the  more  fully-developed  Italian  operas  of 
his  time.  Considered  as  dramas,  they  were  greatly 


TEE  PROGRESS  OF  OPERA. 


73 


superior,  and  it  was  this  that  gave  them  their  na-    LESSON  VIXI- 
tional  character.     They  were  real  French  opera, 
not  merely  Italian  opera  transplanted  into  French 
soil.     At  the  end  of  the  seventeenth  century,  then, 
there  were  two  styles  of  opera  in  Europe  :  1.  The 
Italian,  in  Italy,  Germany  and  England,  charac- 
terized by  the  predominance  of  the  music  over  the   characteristic 
words  and  the  dramatic  action,  laying  chief  stress  tSSmfSmck 
on  the  development  of  its  musical  forms  and  the  and^ian 
elaboration  of  its  melodies.     The  first  requisite  of  j 
the  latter  was  that  they  must  be  pleasing  and  sing- 
able.    Dramatic  truthfulness  in  them  was,  as  it 
still  is  in  most  Italian  operas,  quite  a  subordinate 
matter.     2.  The  national   French  opera,  based  on 
an  ideal  the  exact  reverse  of  that  which  controlled 
Italian  opera,  laying  chief  stress  on  dramatic  ex- 
pression and  relegating  the  music  to  a  subordinate 
position,  wholly  tributary  to  the  main  purpose  of 
the  drama. 


74 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  VIII. 


QUESTIONS. 

In  what  city  was  opera  successfully  cultivated  during 
the  early  part  of  the  seventeenth  century  ? 

What  conditions  there  were  favorable  to  it  ? 

Who  was  the  composer  who  did  most  for  it? 

Give  dates. 

Mention  some  of  his  innovations. 

What  was  the  object  of  these  innovations? 

Give  evidences  of  the  flourishing  condition  of  opera 
in  Venice. 

What  caused  its  decay  ? 

Name  a  second  prominent  Venetian  opera  composer.. 

Who  introduced  Italian  opera  into  Germany  ? 

Give  dates. 

Where  was  this  ? 

When  was  Italian  opera  established  in  Dresden? 

Was  the  state  of  things  in  Dresden  different  from  that 
in  other  court  cities  of  Germany  ? 

How  long  did  it  continue? 

Name  the  prominent  English  composers  of  opera  at 
this  time. 

Give  dates  for  Purcell. 

Was  their  work  essentially  English  or  Italian  in  style?' 

Give  an  account  of  the  course  of  opera  in  Hamburg. 

When  was  Italian  opera  introduced  into  France  ? 

Why  was  it  regarded  as  unsatisfactory  ? 

What  was  the  chief  obstacle  to  the  composition  of 
operas  in  the  French  language  ? 

Who  overcame  this  obstacle,  and  how  ? 

Who  wrote  the  first  French  opera? 

Give  date  of  its  production. 

Why  was  the  success  of  Perrin  and  Cambert  limited  ? 

When  did  their  monopoly  of  opera  pass  into  other 
hands  ? 

Whose? 

What  service  did  Lully  fender  to  French  opera  ? 

Give  an  account  of  Lully,  with  dates. 

Give  the  characteristic  distinction  between  Italian  and 
French  opera  at  this  time. 


Carissimi,  1580- 
1673. 


LESSON  IX. 

MUSIC   IN  THE   SEVENTEENTH   CENTURY. 
1.  The  Growth  of  the  Oratorio  and  of  the  Cantata. 

THE  man  who  did  for  oratorio  much  the  same 
service  that  Monteverde  did  for  opera  was  Giacomo 
Carissimi\  1580-1673;  these  dates  are  somewhat 
doubtful).  He  is  said  to  have  been  one  of  the 
most  active- minded  and  progressive  men  of  his 
time.  Most  of  the  professional  musicians  had 
been  brought  up  in  the  traditions  of  polyphony, 
and  were  strongly  conservative  in  their  feelings 
and  opinions.  They  were  apt  to  look  down  on 
the  new  attempts  at  monophonic  music,  whether 
in  drama,  oratorio  or  church  music,  as  mere 
amateurish  innovations,  unworthy  of  educated  mu- 
sicians. So  they  treated  all  this  phase  of  musical 
activity,  out  of  which  so  large  a  part  of  our  modern 
music  has  grown,  with  indifference  or  contempt. 

Carissimi  was  of  a  different  mind.  He  thought  He  adopts  the 
there  was  a  field  for  the  dramatic  style  of  solo ;  %%p*°*ie 
singing,  and  that  it  could  be  made  more  ex- 
pressive and  more  effective  than  polyphony.  He 
was  a  professional  musician  and  director  of  music 
at  one  of  the  churches  in  Rome ;  but  he  devoted 
many  years  of  his  life  to  the  development  of  what 
he  called  chamber  cantatas,  essentially  the  same 
kind  of  works  which  we  call  cantatas  nowadays. 
They  were,  really,  musical  dramas  without  action 
or  scenery.  The  music  consisted,  as  it  still  con- 
sists in  our  modern  cantata  and  oratorio,  of  recita- 
tives, arias,  duets,  trios,  quartets  and  choruses, 
the  one  or  the  other  kind  being  employed  accord- 
ing to  the  dramatic  requirements  of  the  text. 
75 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  IX. 


Canssimfs 
recitatives-. 


Difference  be~ 
tictt'n  the  can- 
t'lin  and  the 
oratorio. 


Given  without  stage  accessories,  everything  was 
left  to  the  imagination  of  the  hearer.  There  was 
no  drawing  off  of  the  attention  to  subordinate 
matters,  no  disturbance  by  stage  incongruities  or 
inadequacies ;  the  imagination  had  free  play,  and 
each  hearer  was  edified  in  proportion  to  his  own 
imaginative  power  and  to  the  dramatic  sugges- 
tiveness  of  the  poem.  But,  as  von  Dommer  has 
well  pointed  out  in  his  excellent  history  of  music 
(p.  295),  the  absence  of  the  stage  accessories  and 
of  action  made  the  demands  on  the  composer  all 
the  more  severe.  Where  attention  was  concen- 
trated on  the  music,  defects  in  form  or  in  euphony 
and  rhythm,  or  in  dramatic  expressiveness,  were 
all  the  more  glaring  and  noticeable. 

Carissimi  set  himself  to  a  task  which  he  deemed 
worthy  of  all  his  powers.  He  sought  to  make 
of  the  recitative  a  refined  and  forcible  kind  of 
musical  declamation,  and  to  make  it  as  expressive 
as  possible  in  a  natural  way,  approximating  im- 
passioned declamatory  speech.  He  sought  to 
make  the  aria  beautiful  in  melody,  perfect  in 
form  and  expressive  in  style.  He  strove  for 
noble  simplicity,  beauty  and  dramatic  truthful- 
ness in  every  portion  of  his  work.  In  this  he 
succeeded,  to  the  delight  and  edification  of  his 
contemporaries.  He  made  the  cantata  a  real 
art- work,  based  on  genuine  art-principles,  and 
laid  down  the  lines  on  which  it  has  been  culti- 
vated ever  since. 

Of  course,  such  a  service  rendered  to  the 
cantata  was  rendered  equally  to  the  oratorio,  for 
a  cantata  differs  from  an  oratorio  only  in  having 
a  secular  rather  than  a  sacred  subject.  An 
oratorio  is,  to  all  intents  and  purposes,  a  sacred 
cantata.  If  the  latter  term  is  ever  used  nowa- 
days in  distinction  from  the  term  oratorio,  it 


MUSIC  IN  THE  SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY. 


77 


means  either  a  work  slighter  and  shorter  than  is 
thought  necessary  for  the  name  oratorio,  or  one 
on  a  subject  more  or  less  related  to  religious  life, 
without  having  a  scriptual  text.  Carissimi  wrote 
"  Sacred  Cantatas  "  or  "  Motettes,"  shorter  than 
oratorios,  but  he  wrote  oratorios  also,  on  the  same 
general  lines  as  his  chamber  cantatas  (secular). 
These  works,  like  our  modern  oratorios,  treated 
scriptural  subjects.  "Jephtha,"  "David  and 
Jonathan,"  "  Abraham  an'd  Isaac  "  were  among 
them.  How  many  works  of  these  different  kinds 
he  wrote  in  the  course  of  his  long  life  is  not 
known.  Most  of  them  are  lost.  But  enough 
remain  to  show  the  quality  of  his  work  and  to 
give  him  a  clear  title  to  be  called  the  "  Father  of 
Cantata  and  of  Oratorio."  Besides,  his  work  was 
not  only  popular  in  his  own  day,  but  has  exerted 
a'most  extended  and  far-reaching  influence  from 
that  time  to  the  present.  From  the  time  of 
Carissimi  the  cantata  and  oratorio  have  been 
favorite  forms  of  composition,  and  there  is  no 
prospect  of  any  diminution  of  their  popularity. 
Every  new  composer  tries  his  hand  at  one  or 
both,  and  new  works  in  this  field  are  produced 
every  year.  All  this  vast  and  growing  wealth  of 
secular  and  sacred  dramatic  music  has  grown  out 
of  the  work  of  Carissimi,  has  followed  the  lines 
he  laid  down,  and  has  adopted  the  forms  he  de- 
veloped, elaborating  them  more  or  less,  but,  on 
the  whole,  departing  far  less  widely  from  his 
models  than  might  have  been  expected,  considering 
that  more  than  two  centuries  have  elapsed  since 
his  death.  His  was  an  epoch-making  activity, 
and  his  work  marks  the  beginning  of  a  great 
historical  era,  the  end  of  which  is  not  yet. 

In   Germany,   Heinrich   Schu'tz    (1585-1672), 
already  mentioned,  in  the  last  losson,  as  the  com-  ' 


LESSO;*  IX- 


Oirissimf* 
work  and  inflv 
ence. 


,  1585- 


78 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LKSSO?/  IX.    I 


Sebiistiana. 


Yiadana,  1565- 
1644,  introduces 
tola  singing  into 
the  church  ser- 
vice. 


poser  of  the  first  German  opera,  composed  several 
works  on  the  general  lines  of  the  oratorio,  and  so 
rendered  quite  as  great  a  service  to  this  branch  of 
musical  art  in  his  native  country  as  he  did  to 
dramatic  art  in  the  introduction  of  opera.  He 
wrote  The  Passion,  according  to  the  four  accounts 
given  in  the  gospels,  The  Story  of  the  Resurrection, 
and  The  Seven  Last  Words  of  the  Redeemer.  These 
works  were  far  less  advanced  in  style  than  those 
of  Carissimi,  but  they  served  to  lay  the  founda- 
tions of  German  oratorio.  The  only  other  Ger- 
man name  to  be  mentioned  here  is  a  Prussian 
music-director  named  Sebastiani,  who  wrote  a 
"  Passion-music,"  given  for  the  first  time  in  1672, 
in  which  the  congregational  chorals  were  inter- 
woven with  the  gospel  narrative,  the  comments  of 
the  believers  and  the  bystanders,  and  the  choruses 
which  represented  the  multitude. 

As  Italians  were  the  first  to  introduce  solo  sing- 
ing into  dramatic  music,  both  sacred  and  secular, 
so  it  was  an  Italian  who  first  introduced  it  into 
church  music  proper.  This  was  Ludovico  Viadana 
(1565-1644).  He  lived  some  time  in  Rome,  then 
became  director  of  music  at  the  cathedral  of  Fano, 
and  afterward  at  that  of  Mantua.  He  wrote  what 
he  called  Church  concertos  (concerti  da  chiesa); 
they  consisted  of  solo  pieces  and  duets,  trios,  etc., 
for  solo  voices,  with  organ  accompaniment.  These 
were  written  about  the  time  mouophonic  music  for 
dramatic  purposes  was  invented  in  Florence. 
Viadana  eschewed  the  polyphonic  style  because 
he  believed  that  he  could  make  the  words  much 
better  understood  and  give  them  truer  expression 
in  the  style  he  chose.  It  is  the  old  story  of  the 
revolt  of  the  Camerata  against  the  trammels  of 
polyphony,  in  the  interest  of  musical  expression 
of  feeling.  Viadana  had  the  true,  sincere  feeling 


MUSIC  IN  THE  SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY. 


79 


for  art.  He  carefully  avoided  all  display  of  vocal 
attainments,  aiming  at  a  noble,  dignified  sim- 
plicity. He  demanded  of  his  singers  intelligence, 
sincerity  and  true  feeling. 

His  organ  accompaniments  embodied  real  har- 
mony, as  distinguished  from  counterpoint.  He 
wrote  a  continuous  bass  (basso  eontinuo),  and  with 
chords,  more  or  less  full  as  occasion  seemed  to  re- 
quire. Up  to  this  time,  chords  had  been  merely 
the  result  of  the  combination  of  voice-parts  in 
polyphony.  Now  they  began  to  be  used  inde- 
pendently of  any  such  combination.  Viadana  did 
not  indicate  the  chords  by  'figures  over  his  basses, 
as  Peri  had  done.  But  this  speedily  became  a 
^common  practice,  even  in  cases  of  polyphonic 
writing. 

After  the  middle  of  the  century  the  influence 
of  Viadana's  work  was  more  and  more  widely  felt. 
•Church  composers  wrote  motettes  in  his  style,  and 
monophonic  music  began  gradually  to  displace 
polyphony  in  the  church  service.  The  best  known 
of  the  polyphonic  church  writers  of  this  time  is 
Gregorio  Allegri  (1580-1652).  A  Miserere  of  his 
is  still  performed  on  Good  Friday  in  the  Papal 
•Chapel.  For  a  most  admirable  account  of  its 
effects  see  Mendelssohn's  "  Letters  from  Italy  and 
Switzerland." 

Vocal  music  had  been  specially  cultivated 
among  the  Italians  from  the  very  beginning  of 
church  music  in  Italy.  Italian  voices  were 
superior  to  any  other  in  Europe ;  Italian  singers 
devoted  special  attention  to  beauty  of  tone  and 
excellence  in  vocal  execution,  and  easily  attained 
Si  supremacy  which  even  yet  can  hardly  be  dis- 
puted. The  church  composers  were  usually,  -if 
not  always,  singers.  They  knew  how  to  write  for 
the  voice,  and  they  demanded  of  their  singers  the 


LESSON  IX 


Viadana's 

harmony. 


Allegri,  1580- 
1652. 


Vocal  music  in 
Italy. 


80 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  IX. 


Discipline  uj 
students  of  siny- 
iii'/  in  Italy  in 
the  nth  century. 


ability  to  perform  the  best  works  they  were  able 
to  compose. 

Of  course,  the  introduction  of  solo  singing  in 
the  church  service,  in  opera  and  oratorio  greatly 
stimulated  vocal  cultivation.  How  far  this  was 
carried  in  the  seventeenth  century,  and  how  great 
were  the  demands  of  various  kinds  made  on 
singers,  we  may  learn  from  the  following  para- 
graph, translated  from  von  Dommer's  "  History 
of  Music,"  (Chap.  XVI,  page  440).  It  refers  to 
the  training  of  the  singers  for  the  Papal  Chapel 
in  the  time  of  Pope  Urban  VIII,  about  1636. 

"The  pupils  were  obliged  to  practice  difficult, 
passages  one  hour  daily,  in  order  to  acquire  a 
good  technic.  Another  hour  they  devoted  to 
the  practice  of  the  trill ;  a  third  to  correct  and 
pure  intonation, — all  in  the  presence  of  their  mas- 
ter, and  standing  before  a  mirror,  so  as  to  observe 
the  position  of  the  tongue  and  mouth,  and  to  avoid 
all  grimaces  in  singing.  Two  more  hours  they 
devoted  to  the  study  of  expression  and  taste,  and 
of  literature.  This  was  the  forenoon's  work.  In 
the  afternoon  they  devoted  a  half-hour  to  the 
theory  of  sound,  another  to  simple  counterpoint, 
an  hour  to  composition,  and  the  rest  of  the  day  to 
harpsichord  playing,  the  composition  of  a  psalm 
or  motette,  or  some  other  work  adapted  to  the 
talent  and  inclination  of  the  pupil.  Sometimes 
they  sang  in  some  of  the  other  Roman  churches,  or 
went  there  to  hear  the  works  of  masters.  When 
they  came  home  they  had  to  give  the  master  an 
account  of  all  they  had  experienced.  They  fre- 
quently went  out  by  the  Porta  angelica  to  Monte 
Mario,  to  sing,  where  there  was  an  echo,  in  order 
to  observe  their  own  faults  from  its  responses. 
Such  studies  may  well  have  produced  results 
which  seem  incredible  to  us.  It  is  said  of  the 


MUSIC  IN  THE  SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY. 


81 


distinguished  singer  Baldasser  Ferri,  of  Perugia 
(1610-80),  for  the  possession  of  whom  the  courts 
of  Europe  competed,  that  he  could  sing  a  chain- 
trill  of  two  octaves  in  chromatic  intervals  up  and 
down  in  one  breath,  and  this  with  absolute  purity 
of  intonation.  Besides  this,  he  was  quite  as  dis- 
tinguished for  characteristic  variety  of  expres- 
sion." 

This  may  serve  to  show  the  condition  of  vocal 
technic  toward  the  latter  part  of  the  century.  It 
is  quite  probable  that  what  was  then  regarded  as 
characteristic  expressiveness  in  singing  would 
sound  very  crude  to  our  ears.  But  as  regards 
mere  vocal  gymnastics,  purity  of  intonation  and 
beauty  of  tone,  the  results  then  achieved  were 
probably  the  limit  of  human  capability. 


LESSON  IX. 


82 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


QUESTIONS. 

Who  was  The  Father  of  the  Cantata  and  the  Oratorio  ? 

Where  did  he  live? 

How  did  his  ideals  differ  from  those  of  most  contempo- 
i  rary  musicians? 

What  is  the  difference  between  a  cantata  and  an  ora- 
torio? 

What  traits  have  they  in  common  ? 

Of  what  elements  do  they  consist? 

What  can  you  say  of  the  influence  arissimi's 

work  ? 

Who  wrote  the  first  German  oratorios  ? 

Name  another  German  composer  in  this  connection. 

Give  some  account  of  Schutz's  work. 

Who  first  w.rote  monophonic  church  music  in  Italy  ? 

Give  an  account  of  his  work. 

What  is  a  basso  continue*  ? 

Who  was  the  best  known  composer  of  polyphonic 
church  music  at  this  period? 

What  influences  conduced  to  the  development  of  solo 
singing? 

Give  an  account  of  the  studies  of  young  singers  at  this 
period. 

Give  an  instance  of  Ferri's  attainments  in  vocal 
technic. 


LESSON  X. 

MUSIC  IN  THE  SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY. 

(Concluded.) 

The  Development  of  Instrumental  Music. 

THE  crude  orchestration  of  the  early  opera  and 
oratorio  was  referred  to  in  the  last  lesson.  But  it ,  music- 
was  a  matter  of  course  that,  although  solo  sing- 
ing naturally  received  the  greater  stimulus  from 
the  new  monophony,  nevertheless  the  instrumental 
portion  of  the  operas,  oratorios,  chamber  cantatas, 
church  concertos,  etc.,  should  share  more  or  less  in 
this  impulse,  and  should  gradually  be  developed. 
The  attempt  to  give  characteristic  expression  to 
all  portions  of  dramatic  works  led  to  a  keener  and 
more  refined  perception  of  instrumental  effects, 
and  so  the  art  and  science  of  orchestration  was 
gradually  developed.  The  necessity  of  .perfection 
in  details  also  led  to  the  gradual  development  of 
each  individual  class  of  instruments,  the  sifting 
out  of  those  kinds  least  available  for  the  purposes 
of  dramatic  expression,  the  further  sifting  of  the 
varieties  within  each  class,  and  the  survival  of  the 
fittest.  Thus,  for  example,  the  stringed  instru-  in$trwne«t»  of 
ments  played  with  a  bow  were  of  two  gen  oral 
orders :  I.  Knee  violins  (da  Gamba),  and  II.  Ann 
violins  (da  Braccio).  In  the  first  order  there 
were  three  kinds  of  bass  and  three  of  tenor  viols 
In  the  second  there  were  three  kinds  of  violas  and 
four  kinds  of  violinsj  three  of  them  smaller  than 
ours.  Thus  there  were  thirteen  different  kinds  of 
instruments  played  with  a  bow.  The  sifting  pro- 
cess has  reduced  this  number  to  four:  violin,  viola, 
violoncello  and  double-bass.  The  wood-wind  and 
83 


the  violin  clast. 


84 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HIS. TORY. 


LZSSON  X. 


Lolly's  over- 
turn. 


A,  Scarlatti. 


Chamber  music. 


Corelli. 
165^-1713. 


brass  instruments  also  diminished  in  number  by 
the  same  process. 

Side  by  side  with  this  sifting  went  on  the  gradual 
development  of  the  individual  instruments  and  of 
solo  playing.  In  the  accompaniments  of  dra- 
matic music,  composers  had  to  study  the  capacities 
of  each  kind  of  instrument  for  characteristic  ex- 
pression and  also  its  technical  capabilities,  and, 
of  course,  both  they  and  the  players  gained 
knowledge  and  skill  from  experience.  With  the 
improvement  in  individual  playing  came  in- 
creased freedom  in  writing,  and  the  gradual  de- 
velopment of  independent  pieces  for  the  orchestra, 
Lully  wrote  overtures  to  his  operas,  which,  though 
short,  were,  nevertheless,  in  form,  the  germ  of  the 
modern  overture,  sonata  form  and  symphony. 
They  had  a  slow  introduction,  followed  by  a 
lively  minuet  or  a  fugue.  Alessandro  Scarlatti, 
whose  work  belongs  partly  to  the  next  century, 
and  who  will  be  mentioned  further  in  the  next 
lesson,  did  a  great  deal  for  the  development  of 
the  orchestra. 

Instrumental  chamber  music  began  to  flourish 
in  the  latter  half  of  the,  seventeenth  century. 
The  world  owes  the  early  development  of  thisj 
branch  of  art  also  to  Italy.  "  The  father  of  th$ 
true  chamber  music  style  and  of  real  violin  play- 
ing," as  von  Dommer  calls  him  (p.  456),  was 
Arcangelo  Corelli  (1653-1713),  the  most  renowned 
violinist  of  his  time.  He  is  said  to  have  produced 
a  pure,  clear,  even,  beautiful  tone;  his  style  of 
playing  was  characterized  by  a  noble,  dignified 
simplicity  and  by  profound  musical  feeling.  He 
composed  a  great  deal  for  his  instrument — 
church  sonatas,  chamber  sonatas,  concertos  and 
sonatas  for  the  violin  associated  with  other  in- 
struments. They  were  short,  but  well  defined  in 


MUSIC  IN  THE  SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY. 


LESSON  x. 


form,  rich  in  power  of  melodic  invention,  beauti- 
fully  lyric  in  style,  refined  and  pure  in  harmony, 
dignified,  avoiding  all  display  of  what  is  now 
called  virtuosity.  "  Corelli  set  instrumental  music 
for  the  chamber,  once  for  all,  on  the  right  path," 
says  von  Donimer.  He  was  not  distinguished  for 
great  execution  on  his  instrument  ;  indeed,  many 
other  violinists  of  his  time  surpassed  him  in  this. 
But  the  main  features  of  his  style,  both  as  player 
and  composer,  are  models  for  all  time,  because 
based  on  universal  principles.  His  pupils,  of 
whom  he  had  many,  and  successors  only  carried 
out  and  developed  what  he  had  begun. 

Corelli  is  said  to  have  been  a  very  modest,  dif- 
fident man,  easily  embarrassed  and  confused,  so 
much  so  that  in  the  orchestra  and  in  concerted 
playing  he  frequently  appeared  at  great  disad- 
vantage as  compared  with  others  who  were  in 
most  important  respects  greatly  his  inferiors. 

The  Venetian  School  of  Organists  was  supreme  :  organ  music. 
up  to  the  early  part  of  the  seventeenth  century. 
The  sceptre  was  then  transferred  to  Rome.  The  j 
greatest  organist  of  the  first  half  of  the  century 
was  Girolamo  Frescobaldi  (1588-1653),  called 
"  the  father  of  the  true  organ  style."  His  com- 
plete works  are  still  preserved.  He  wrote  a  great 
many  pieces  for  the  organ  and  harpsichord,  and 
attained  the  highest  reputation  as  organist  of  any 
man  of  his  time.  People  flocked  to  hear  him 
play,  his  admirers  followed  him  from  city  to  city, 
and  at  his  first  public  performance  in  Rome, 
thirty  thousand  people  are  said  to  have  crowded 
to  hear  him  !  Pupils  came  to  him  from  all  over 
Europe,  and  he  educated  the  best  German  organ- 
ists of  the  next  generation.  He  contributed  much 
to  the  development  of  the  fugue  style  of  organ 
music  which  culminated  in  Sebastian  Bach,  and 


Frescobaldi. 
1588-1653. 


86 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  X. 


Sweelinck, 
1540-1621 


Scheldt  and 
other  distin- 
guished German 
organists. 


Patquini, 
1637-1710. 


marks  the  culminating  point  of  Italian  organ- 
music  From  his  time  there  was  a  gradual  fall- 
ing off,  and  supremacy  in  this  field  passed  over 
t©  Germany. 

But  it  ought  not  to  be  forgotten  that  both  Fres- 
cobaldi  and  his  German  contemporaries  owed 
much  to  Netherland  teaching.  Frescobaldi  spent 
several  years  of  his  early  life  in  Flanders,  where 
the  organist  of  the  principal  church  in  Amster- 
dam, Jan  Pieter  Sweelinck  (1540-1621),  had  a 
great  reputation,  and  taught  a  great  many  foreign 
pupils,  especially  Germans.  Sweelinck,  however,, 
had  studied  in  Italy,  having  gone  to  Venice  in 
1557,  where  he  was  a  pupil  of  Zarlino.  He  seems 
to  have  been  an  exceptionally  excellent  teacher 
as  well  as  a  great  organist,  and  he  educated  a 
large  number  of  the  best  German  organists,  among; 
them  Samuel  Scheldt,  of  Halle  (1587-1654),  the 
greatest  German  organist  of  his  time  ;  Melchior 
Schild,  of  Hanover ;  Paul  Syfert,  of  Danzig ;  Jacob 
Schultz  and  Heinrich  Scheidemann,  of  Hamburg,, 
and  Johann  Adam  Reinken  (1623-1722),  also 
of  Hamburg.  Other  renowned  German  organists 
of  this  century  were  Johann  Jacob  Froberger 
(1635-1695),  Johann  Caspar  Kerl  (1628-1693), 
both  pupils  of  Frescobaldi,  Johann  Pachelbel 
(1653-1706),  and  Dietrich  Buxtehude  (1637- 
1707).  Sebastian  Bach,  when  he  was  a  lad  in 
the  school  at  Luneburg,  used  to  walk  to  Ham- 
burg to  hear  Reinken,  and  made  at  least  one  trip 
to  Liibeck  to  hear  Buxtehude. 

Bernardo  Pasquini  (1637-1710)  was,  next  to- 
Frescobaldi,  the  greatest  Italian  master  of  the 
organ.  He  was,  like  his  older  contemporary,  a 
thorough  musician,  furnished  with  all  the  best 
knowledge  of  his  time,  and  highly  respected  not 
only  in  Italy  but  in  Germany.  He  also  educated 


MUSIC  IN  THE  SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY. 


«7 


many  German  musicians,  and  distinguished  him- 
self as  a  harpsichord  player  and  as  a  dramatic 
composer. 

The  harpsichord  was  an  instrument  so  con- 
venient for  producing  harmony  and  for  poly- 
phonic playing  by  a  single  performer  that,  al- 
though its  artistic  capabilities  were  very  limited, 
it  nevertheless  grew  into  high  favor  among  musi- 
cians and  amateurs.  Its  development  kept  pace 
with  that  of  the  organ,  and  by  the  end  of  the 
seventeenth  century  it  had  nearly  or  quite  reached 
the  limit  of  its  capacities.  It  had  become  quite 
a  large,  elaborate  instrument,  with  two  keyboards. 
These  two  manuals  could  be  coupled  together,  the 
upper  one  reinforcing  the  other  by  a  separate  set 
of  strings  an  octave  higher,  thus  adding  power 
and  brilliancy  to  the  instrument.  In  this  form  it 
was  in  common  use,  especially  for  concert  pur- 
poses and  in  the  orchestra.  The  spinet  or  vir- 
ginal, a  small,  square  harpsichord,  was  much  used 
in  small  rooms,  in  convents  and  households.  The 
clavichord  was  used  more  by  artists  and  less  by 
amateurs,  for  reasons  given  in  a  previous  lesson. 

Mastery  of  these  instruments  was  expected  of 
every  professional  musician  as  a  matter  of  course. 
Every  organist  was  also  a  harpsichord  player ; 
music  written  for  the  organ  was  played  on  the 
harpsichord,  and  vice  versa.  There  was  also  some 
writing  of  music  specially  adapted  for  the  harpsi- 
chord and  clavichord.  The  numerous  embellish- 
ments of  the  harpsichord  music  of  this  and  the 
following  century  seem  to  have  been  not  so  much 
mere  imitations  of  vocal  ornaments  as  attempts  to 
fill  up  the  time  of  long  notes  on  an  instrument  in- 
capable of  a  sustained  tone.  The  French  excelled 
at  this  time  as  harpsichord  players.  There  was  a 
family  named  Couperin,  at  Paris,  very  distinguished 


LESSOX  X. 


Harpsichord 
and  clavichord 


88 


LESSONS  .EV  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  X. 
F.  Ootiperin, 


,7.  P.  Rameau. 


ckutid. 
1069-L737. 


/Summary. 


both  as  organists  and  harpsichordists  for  more 
than  a  century.  Francois  (1668-1733)  had  the 
highest  reputation  for  the  elegance,  refinement  and 
tastefulness  of  his  harpsichord  music.  His  works 
and  performances  did  much  to  establish  French 
taste  in  this  field  all  over  Europe. 

J.  P.  Rameau,  to  be  mentioned  later  as  a  French 
opera  composer  and  an  epoch-making  theorist, 
wrote  fine  harpsichord  music,  and  Louis  Marchand 
(1669-1732)  was  an  extremely  brilliant  player  of 
this  instrument  as  well  as  an  excellent  organist. 
In  Italy,  Frescobaldi  and  Pasquini  were  excellent 
harpsichordists ;  so  was  Alessandro  Scarlatti ;  and, 
in  general,  organists  and  musicians  made  it  a  point 
to  master  the  harpsichord.  The  German  organists 
mentioned  above  were  all  good  harpsichord  play- 
ers, some  of  them  very  distinguished. 

At  the  end  of  the  seventeenth  century  the  status 
of  instrumental  music  was  this  :  The  violin  family 
had  been  reduced,  by  a  process  of  natural  selection, 
to  nearly  its  present  limits  and  the  art  of  violin 
making  had  been  brought  to  perfection.  All 
through  this  century  the  Amati  family,  and  later 
the  Guarneri  and  Stradivari  families,  in  Cremona, 
were  making  their  famous  instruments,  never  since 
equaled  and  worth  enormous  sums  to  their  pres- 
ent possessors. 

The  lute  family  had  come  to  occupy  a  decidedly 
subordinate  position.  The  incapacity  for  artistic 
purposes  of  all  instruments  of  the  guitar  type  was 
recognized  and  they  have  ever  since  been  mostly 
given  over  to  peoples  and  individuals  whose 
musical  taste  is  of  a  primitive,  undeveloped  char- 
acter. 

The  wind  instruments,  both  wood  and  brass, 
were  still  undergoing  the  sifting  process.  The 
combination  of  them  into  the  groups  of  our  mod- 


MUSIC  IN  THE  SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY. 


LESSON  X. 


Deficiency-*  of 
the  harpsi'  Imrd 
and  tlte  clivi- 
chord. 


era  orchestra  had  not  yet  been  dreamed  of,  and 
was  not  to  come  until  nearly  a  century  later. 

The  harpsichord  and  the  clavichord  had 
reached  the  limit  of  their  development  and  their 
deficiencies  were  so  generally  felt  that  active 
efforts  were  being  made  to  improve  them  in  the 
direction  of  sustained  tone  and  increase  and 
diminution  of  power.  Out  of  these  efforts  came 
the  piano-forte,  in  the  first  decade  of  the  next 
century,  an  instrument  which  only  partially  meets 
these  demands.  But  the  experiments  which  finally  j 
resulted  in  the  invention  of  our  present  instrument  j 
were  by  no  m3aas  the  only  ones.  Attempts  were  i  Attempts  to  i 
made  to  transform  the  harpsichord  into  an  instru-|pro< 
ment  producing  the  same  effect  as  if  played  with  a 
bow.  In  this  instrument  the  pressing  of  each  key 
brought  a  resine  J  wheel  in  contact  with  the  string. 
The  wheels  were  kept  rotating  by  machinery  set 
in  motion  by  the  foot.  Other  ideas  looking  toward 
the  improvement  of  the  harpsichord  were  also 
broached.  As  regards  this  instrument  the  attitude 
of  the  musical  world  was  one  of  eager  desire  and 
expectation  of  radical  improvement.  The  organ 
was  in  condition  to  meet  the  fullest  demands  of 
polyphonic  playing  and  a  vast  deal  of  music  in 
this  style  was  written  for  it  by  the  organists  of  the 
time. 

Solo  playing  on  all  the  instruments  in  use  had  solo  playing. 
reached  a  high  degree   of  perfection,  both  as  re- 
gards  technical    execution    and  grace,  finish  and 
expressiveness  of  style.     Concerted  chamber  music 
was  fairly  under   way  and   a  good  deal  that  was  j 
valuable  had  already  been  accomplished.     Out  of 
these  elements  the  materials  of  the  orchestra  of  the 
future  were  shaping  themselves.     As  for  the  actual 
orchestra  of  the  time,  it  had  hardly  emerged  from 
infancy. 


90 


LESSONS  .LV  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  X  QUESTIONS. 

What  motives  operated  to  reduce  the  number  of  varie- 
ties in  each  class  of  instruments  ? 

How  did  the  development  of  the  different  kinds  of 
instruments  and  of  solo  playing  come  to  pass? 

How  many  kinds  of  stringed  instruments  played  with  & 
bow  were  there? 

How  many  are  there  now? 

Into  what  two  orders  were  they  divided  ? 

Name  two  men  who  contributed  to  the  early  develop- 
ment of  orchestral  music. 

Who  was  "the  father"  of  chamber  music? 

Tell  what  you  know  of  him  and  his  playing. 

What  great  Italian  organist  was  called  <l  the  father  of 
the  true  organ  style?''  Give  some  account  of  him.  Who 
was  his  teacher? 

Name  some  of  the  German  pupils  of  this  teacher. 

Name  some  other  great  German  organists  of  this  time. 

Name  the  second  greatest  Italian  organist  of  thia 
ceutury. 

Describe  the  harpsichord  of  the  end  of  this  century. 

Give  an  account  of  the  state  of  harpsichord  music. 

Name  some  distinguished  French  harpsichord  players- 
German.  Italian. 

Who  were  the  great  Italian  violin  makers  of  this  cen- 
tury and  in  what  city  did  they  live? 

What  was  the  fate  of  the  guitar  (or  lute)  family  of 
instruments? 

What  was  the  condition  of  the  wind  instruments  at  the 
end  of  the  century? 

Of  the  harpsichord  and  the  clavichord? 

Describe  the  attempts  to  improve  the  harpsichord. 

How  far  was  the  organ  developed  ? 

What  was  the  condition  of  solo  playing  on  all  solo- 
instruments? 

What  was  the  condition  of  the  orchestra  ? 


LESSON  XL 

ITALIAN   OPERA    FROM   ALESSANDRO   SCARLATTI    TO 
THE   PRESENT. 

ITALIAN  OPERA,  as  we  have  seen,  originated 
in  an  attempt  to  revive  the  Greek  Drama.  As 
music-drama,  it  involved  music  as  one  of  its 
principal  elements ;  but  the  element  of  dramatic 
representation  ought  to  have  been,  and  was,  at 
first,  the  predominant  one.  We  have  already 
seen  that  the  French,  a  nation  pre-eminent  in 
dramatic  taste  and  talent,  retained  this  ideal 
of  opera  after  Italy  had  lost  it.  Opera  in  Italy 
went  from  Florence  to  Venice,  where  it  was 
developed  by  Monteverde  and  others.  Then 
the  seat  of  its  supremacy  was  transferred  to 
Naples.  In  this  city  there  was  developed  a 
style  of  music,  especially  in  opera,  no  less  origi- 
nal and  influential  than  that  of  Venice.  The 
first  great  name  in  Neapolitan  music  is  that  of 
Alessandro  Scarlatti  (1659-1725).  He  wras  a 
pupil  of  the  Roman  school  of  Carissimi,  and 
was  thoroughly  educated  in  the  style  of  church 
music,  oratorio  and  chamber  music  cultivated 
by  that  distinguished  master.  His  general 
musical  education  was  of  the  very  best;  he  was 
thoroughly  trained  in  all  the  special  branches 
of  his  profession,  and  as  singing  teacher,  con- 
ductor, performer  and  composer  in  all  styles. 
he  ranked  among  the  first  musicians  of  his 
time.  The  Roman  school  of  church  music,  of 
which  Palestrina  had  been  and  will  always 
remain  the  foremost  representative,  was  char- 
acterized by  sublime  elevation  of  style,  by 

91 


Opera  in 

Venice  and  in 

2fapies. 


Alessandro 
Scarlatti, 
1659-1726. 


LESSORS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


JScarlatti'i 
Muxical 
Forms. 


Character- 
istics of 
Italian  Opera. 


noble  and  dignified  simplicity.  That  of  the 
Neapolitan  school,  headed  by  Scarlatti,  was 
characterized  mainly  by  sensuous  charm  and 
beauty  of  melody.  He  was  an  incredibly  pro- 
lific composer.  He  is  said  to  have  written  two 
hundred  masses,  a  very  large  number  of  motets, 
psalms,  concertos,  etc.,  five  hundred  cantatas, 
many  madrigals,  etc.,  and  one  hundred  and 
fourteen  operas,  besides  a  great  deal  of  instru- 
mental music. 

In  his  hands  the  musical  element  of  the 
opera  was  predominant.  Not  that  he  did  not 
seek  to  fit  his  music,  in  a  general  way,  to  the 
emotional  character  of  the  words  and  of  the 
situations  of  the  drama;  but  he  was  concerned 
still  more  with  the  perfecting  of  the  musical 
forms,  and  his  arias  and  overtures  served  as 
models  for  Haendel  and  for  all  composers  of 
Italian  opera.  His  overtures  resembled  those 
of  Lully,  and  contained  the  germs  of  the  modern 
symphony.  They  were  commonly  in  three 
divisions,  the  middle  part  being  slow  and  the 
other  two  fast.  After  these  overtures  and 
others  written  on  their  model  began  to  be  played 
as  separate  orchestral  pieces  in  concerts,  the 
three  parts  of  the  overture  were  gradually  de- 
veloped into  three  separate  pieces,  or  "move- 
ments," and  became  what  is  now  called  a 
symphony. 

From  Scarlatti's  day  to  our  own  the  Italian 
opera  has  laid  prime  stress  on  its  melodies. 
The  first  aim  of  Italian  opera  composers  has 
been  to  invent  good  singable,  pleasing  melodies, 
well  developed  as  regards  musical  form  and 
grateful  for  singers.  The  emotional  character, 
while  not  disregarded,  has  been  a  subordinate 
matter,  and  no  Italian  writer  has  hesitated  to 


ITALIAN  OPERA. 


93 


stop  the  action  of  the  drama  in  a  critical  situa- 
tion in  order  to  give  a  singer  opportunity  to 
sing  a  long  and  elaborate  aria,  pleasing  in 
melody,  perhaps  sensational  in  character  and 
often  full  of  technical  difficulties,  for  the  display 
of  the  singer's  attainments  in  vocalization. 

For  the  rest,  Scarlatti  was  as  bold  and 
original  in  his  treatment  of  harmony  as  was 
Monte verde  before  him,  and  was  treated  in 
much  the  same  way.  His  innovations  were 
condemned  by  pedants  and  theorists,  and  imi- 
tated by  all  the  young  generation  of  composers ; 
so  that  his  school  became  a  model,  and  exercised 
a  most  powerful  influence,  not  only  in  Italy, 
but  in  Germany,  in  England  and  even  in  France, 
where  Italian  opera  had  a  strong  party  of  de- 
fenders opposed  to  the  national  school. 

Scarlatti's  Italian  pupils,  Leonardo  Leo  (1694 
-1746)  and  Francesco  Durante  (1684-1755) 
were  among  the  most  distinguished  of  those 
who  helped  to  establish  the  supremacy  of  his 
style ;  Nicola  Piccini  ( 1 724-1 800) ,  another  Nea- 
politan, carried  it  to  France  and  competed 
against  Gluck  with  considerable  success. 

George  Frederick  Haendel  (1685-1759)  mod- 
elled his  operas  on  it,  carried  it  to  London  and 
produced  numerous  works  for  the  English  stage 
for  a  period  of  about  forty  years ;  and  numerous 
pupils  of  Scarlatti,  both  native  and  foreign, 
spread  the  ideas  and  traditions  of  the  Nea- 
politan school  all  over  Europe.  Other  import- 
ant Neapolitan  composers  of  the  time  immedi- 
ately succeeding  Scarlatti  were  his  son,  Do- 
menico  Scarlatti  (1683-1757),  Francesco  Feo 
(born  1699),  Nicolo  Porpora  (born  1685),  Gio- 
vanni Battista  Pergolesi  (1710-1737),  almost 
the  first  to  write  comic  opera;  Leonardo  Vinci 


Scarlatte* 
influence. 


His  pupflt. 


Haendel^ 
1685-1759. 


Important 

Neapolitan 

composers 

after  Scarlatti. 


94 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


1690-1734)  and  Nicolo  Jomelli  (1714-1774). 
Antonio  Sacchini  (1784-1786)  did  most  of  his 
ife-work  as  an  opera  composer  in  Paris;  Gio- 
vanni Paisie-llo  (1741-1815)  wrote  for  most 
of  the  Italian  stages  and  even  for  that  of  St. 
Petersburg,  and  was  a  favorite  in  Germany. 
Dominico  Gimarosa  (1749-1801)  was  one  of 
the  greatest  Neapolitans.  He  wrote  seventy 
operas,  and  his  II  Matrimonio  Segreto,  written 
for  Vienna,  was  one  of  the  greatest  operas  of 
its  time. 

After  Alessandro   Scarlatti,  and  even  partly 

ontemporary    with    him,  "there    were    Italian 

omposers  in  Rome,  Bologna  and  Venice,  who 

were  second  in  ability  and  reputation  to  him 

alone.     But  there  was    no    school   of  operatic 

omposition  which  can  be  discriminated  from 

the  Neapolitan  in  fundamental  principles.     His 

successors  equally  devoted  themselves  mainly 

to  the  musical  side  of  the  opera,  neglecting  the 

dramatic  element,  broadening    and   perfecting 

Scarlatti's  musical  forms,  and  making  the  Aria 

the  principal  element  of  the  opera.     In  Rome, 

one  of  the  most  renowned  masters  was  Giuseppe 

Pitoni   (1657-1743).     Another   was   Francesco 

Gasparini  (1660-1737),  and  still  another  was 

Agastino  Steffani  (1655-1730),   part  of  whose 

life    was   spent  in    Hanover.     In   Venice  the 

greatest  name  was  Antonio  Lotti  (1667-1737). 

Of  other  Venetians,  Antonio    Caldara   (1670- 

173(5),    Benedetto    Marcello    (1686-1739)    and 

Baldassare    Galuppi    (1706-17 8f>)    had    great 

reputation.     Of    similar   rank   were    Giovanni 

Bononcini  (1670-1750),  for  some  time  a  rival 

of  Handel's  in  London,  and  Emanuale  Astorga 

(1681-1736).     In    Germany,  besides  Haendel, 

most  of  whose  writing  was,  however,  for   the 


Emnan  and 
Venetian 
composers. 


ITALIAN  OPERA. 


95 


German 
compoifru  of 
Italian  opera. 


London  stage,  there  were  numerous  celebrated 
composers  of  Italian  opera  on  the  model  of 
Scarlatti.  In  Vienna  the  greatest  name  before 
Mozart,  who  also  wrote  Italian  opera,  but  modi- 
tied,  and  who  holds  a  unique  position,  was 
Johann  Joseph  Fux  (1660-1732),  renowned  not 
only  as  composer,  but  as  conductor  and  the- 
orist ;  his  Gradus  ad  Parnassum  was  for  a  long 
time  the  standard  text-book  in  counterpoint. 
In  Berlin,  Carl  Heinrich  Graun  (1701-1759) 
-was  the  leading  name;  in  Munich,  Johann 
Caspar  Kerl  (1628-1693)  ;  in  Dresden,  Johann 
Adolph  Hasse  (1699-1783).  In  all  these  cities 
there  were  numerous  Italian  conductors,  com- 
posers and  singers.  The  Italian  language  was 
used  in  the  librettos,  even  by  German  masters, 
.and  Italian  opera  held  its  ground  with  great 
tenacity  until  well  into  the  present  century. 

Meanwhile,  not  only  was  prime  stress  laid  on 
the  music  as  opposed  to  the  dramatic  action, 
but  this  one-sided  tendency  was  carried  to  the 
greatest  extreme.  The  aria  became  not  only 
"the  most  important  element  of  the  opera,  but 
•came  to  serve  mainly  as  a  means  of  displaying 
the  utmost  brilliancy  of  vocal  attainments  on 
the  part  of  singers.  Male  sopranos  (eunuchs) 
•competed  with  female  singers  in  virtuoso  per- 
formances. Great  schools  for  the  training  of 
solo  singers  arose  in  Bologna,  Eome,  Milan, 
Venice,  Naples  and  Florence,  and  solo  per- 
formances were  the  central  feature  of  Italian 
opera,  everything  being  sacrificed  to  sensuous 
-charm,  brilliant  effect  and  th»  vanity  of  soloists. 
Among  the  most  celebrated  male  singers  of 
this  period  were  Pistocchi  (born  1659),  Ber- 
nacchi  (born  1700),  Senesino  (born  1680), 
Nicolini  (born  1685),  and,  greatest  of  all,  Far- 


Italian  opera 
degenerates 
into  a  mere 
display  of 

vocalization. 


Great  singers 
of  the  18th 
century. 


or, 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


Great  singers 

since 

Jfaendel's 
time. 


Rosirini. 
1792-1868. 


inelli  (born  1705).  Among  great  female  sing- 
ers were  Francesco,  Cuzzoni  (born  1700)  and 
Faustini  Bordoni  (born  1693),  the  wife  of 
Hasse,  the  composer.  These  two  ladies  and 
Senesino  were  among  Haendel's  singers  in 
London,  where  he  was  not  only  composer,  but 
conductor  and  theatre  manager,  until  quarrels 
with  the  nobility,  his  patrons,  threw  him  into 
bankruptcy,  and  forced  him  to  devote  his 
powers  to  oratorio.  Many  amusing  anecdotes 
are  related  of  the  vexatious  trials  he  had  to 
undergo  from  the  vanity,  rivalries  and  unend- 
ing caprices  of  these  singers,  especially  Cuz- 
zoni's.  For  details  of  these  matters  the  reader 
must  be  referred  to  Schoelcher's  or  Rockstro's 
"Life  of  Haendel,"  or  to  Grove's  "Dictionary 
of  Music  and  Musicians."  The  plan  of  these 
lessons  will  not  admit  of  biographical  sketches 
of  any 'length. 

A  long  list  of  singers  since  Haendel's  time 
have  been  the  exponents  of  Italian  opera : 
Catalani,  -Pasta,  Sontag,  Malibran,  Viardot, 
Schroeder-Devrient,  Grisi,  Persiani,  Alboni, 
Jenny  Lind,  Cruvelli,  Titiens,  Nilsson,  Patti 
and  numerous  others,  both  male  and  female,  of 
greater  or  less  distinction.  The  first  require- 
ment in  such  singers  has  always  been  beauty  of 
tone  combined  with  florid  execution ;  but  many 
of  them  also  possessed  in  a,  hig-h  degree  the 
dramatic  instinct  and  that  peculiar  "  magnetic  " 
quality  which  attracts  and  captivates  an  audi- 
ence. 

Italian  opera,  embodying  the  tendencies 
above  noted,  culminated  in  Giachomo  Rossini 
(1792-1868),  one  of  the  most  original  creators 
of  melody  known  to  musical  history.  His 
operas  are  full  of  sensuous  charm  of  melody 


ITALIAN  OPERA. 


97 


and  harmony.  They  are  brilliant  and  striking, 
easily  to  be  enjoyed  without  intellectual  effort, 
calculated  for  the  entertainment  of  an  idle, 
luxurious,  pleasure-seeking  societ}-.  As  such, 
they  continue  to  amuse  the  civilized  world, 
even  to  this  day.  Only  one  of  them,  William 
Tell,  has  any  special  dramatic  force  or  elevat- 
ing tendency.  His  principal  operas,  besides 
William  Tell,  were  Tancred,  The  Barber  of 
Seville,  Othello,  La  Centenerola,  La  Gazza 
Ladra,  Moses  in  Egypt,  The  Lady  of  the  Lake 
and  Semiramis.  He  was  born  at  Pesaro, 
studied  under  Padre  Martini,  a  celebrated 
teacher  of  Bologna,  began  writing  operas 
early,  made  a  fortune  by  his  brilliant  produc- 
tions and  retired  to  Paris  to  enjoy  it.  Not- 
withstanding his  spontaniety,  which  enabled 
him  to  produce  fine  melodies  with  the  utmost 
ease  and  fluency,  he  seems  to  have  had  no  im- 
pulse to  compose  after  the  pressure  of  pecuniary 
necessity  ceased.  For  nearly  forty  years  he 
lived  a  life  of  luxurious  ease  in  the  French 
capital,  producing  nothing  but  his  brilliant  and 
sensational,  but  false  and  imreligious,  Stabat 
Miter.  His  remains  were  taken  to  Italy  in 
1887. 

Following  Rossini  came  Vincenzo  Bellini 
(1802-1835),  whose  principal  works  were 
Norma,  La,  Sonnambula  and  /  Puritani,  and 
Gaetano  Donizetti  (1798-1848),  the  composer  of 
.Anna  Bolena,  Elisire  d'Amore,  Lucrezia 
Borgia,  Lucia  di  Lammermoor,  La  Fille  du 
Regiment  and  other  popular  operas.  These 
two  are  only  second  in  rank  to  Rossini,  and 
their  best  works  still  keep  the  Italian  operatic 
stage,  being  heard  more  or  less  frequently  all 
over  Europe  and  America.  Lesser  names  were 


His  opera. 


His  Stabat 
Mater. 


Bell.ini, 

Donizetti  and 

others. 


98 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


Mercadante    (1797-1870)    and    Carafa   (1787- 
1872). 

One  great  Italiai\operatic  composer  remains  to 
be  mentioned,  more  serious  in  aim  than  Rossini 
or  any  of  his  successors,  and  nearly  or  quite  as 
great  in  every  respect  as  Rossini  himself.  This 
is  Guiseppe  Verdi,  born  in  1813  and  still  (1888) 
living  and  producing  important  works.  His 
early  life  was  devoted  to  operas  of  the  common 
Italian  type,  full  of  melodic  charm,  but  much 
more  markedly  dramatic  in  style,  and  far  more 
conscientiously  written,  than  those  of  other 
Italian  composers.  The  orchestra,  too,  is  treated 
more  seriously  than  in  most  Italian  operas, 
where,  as  Wagner  once  said,  it  is  commonly  used 

as  style.  ''  like  a  mighty  guitar."  With  Yerdi  the  orches- 
tra is  less  a  mere  accompaniment  of  arias.  ?.nd 
more  an  integral  portion  of  the  musical  means 
of  enhancing  the  dramatic  effect.  In  short,  he 
has  aimed  more  at  the  creation  of  real  music- 
drama,  and  less  at  mere  sensational  effects  than 
have  his  Italian  contem  poraries  and  predeces- 
sors. This  tendency  is  shown  in  all  his  great 
works,  such  as  77  Trovatore,  Eigoletto  and  La 
Traviata,  and  still  more  decidedly  in  his  latest 
opera's,  Aida  and  Otello,  written  in  his  later 
years,  and  showing  decided  traces  of  the  in- 
fluence of  Wagner's  theories  and  practice.  His 
great  "Manzoni"  Requiem  Mass  shows  the 
same  influence  and  tendencies. 

Of  the  present   generation   of  Italian   com- 

Botto.  posers,  the  best  known  outside  of  Italy  is  Arrigo 
Boito,  born  in  1842,  a  talented  composer  and 
poet.  He  wrote  the  text  to  Yerdi 's  Otello,  and 
has  become  widely  known  in  Europe  by  his 
great  opera,  Mefistofele,  based  on  Goethe's 
"Faust."  He  has  travelled  much,  and  is  thor-, 


ITALIAN  OPERA. 


99 


oughly  conversant  with  the  theories  of  Wagner, 
as  is  proved  by  the  style  of  Mefistofele.  Since 
the  liberation  and  unification  of  Italy,  the  in- 
tellectual life  and  artistic  efforts  of  the  Italians 
seem  to  have  taken  an  upward  tendency,  and  it 
looks  ns  if  we  might  hope  for  a  new  "  Revival 
of  Learning,"  such  as  made  the  Italy  of  three 
hundred  years  ago  the  intellectual  and  artistic 
centre  of  the  civilized  world,  and  the  source  of 
mental  inspiration. 


100 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


QUESTIONS. 

In  what  city,  after  Venice,  did  Italian  opera  receive  its 
greatest  impulse? 

Who  was  the  great  composer  who  did  most  for  its  de- 
velopment there  ? 

Give  some  account  of  him. 

How  did  his  church  music  differ  from  that  of  the  school 
of  Palestrina? 

What  was  the  predominant  element  in  his  operas? 
1    What  did  he  do  for  Italian  opera? 

What  has  been,  since  his  time,  the  chief  characteristic 
of  Italian  opera  ? 

Give  an  account  of  its  degeneration. 

Name  some  of   Scarlatti's  Italian  contemporaries  and 
successors. 

Name  the  most  important  German  composers  of  Italian 
opera. 

Name  some  of  the  great  singers  of  the  first  half  of  the 
last  century. 

Name  some  later  singer*,  down  to  our  own  time. 

In  whose  work  did  Italian  opera  culminate  ? 

Name  his  most  important  successors. 

Name  some  operas  by  these  composers. 

Give  an  account  of  Verdi's  work. 

Name  his  leading  operas. 

Who  is  the  best  known  Italian  operatic  composer  of  to- 
day? 

Name  his  principal  work. 


LESSON  XII.  * 

FRENCH  OPERA  FROM  LULLY'S  TIME  TO  THE 
PRESENT. 

LULLY'S  operas,  as  we  have  seen,  kept  the 
French  stage  for  about  a  century.  During  this 
long  period  no  French  composer  appeared  who 
even  approximated  Lully's  creative  power. 
The  first  of  his  successors  who  could  bear  com- 
parison with  him  was  Jean  Philippe  Rameau 
(1683-1764).  He  was  a  much  greater  musician 
than  Lully,  a  man  of  great  scientific  attain- 
ments. His  works  on  harmony  made  an  epoch 
in  the  treatment  of  the  subject.  He  sought  a 
basis  both  for  the  major  and  the  minor  chord 
in  the  science  of  acoustics.  He  derived  the 
major  chord  (over-chord)  from  the  series  of 
harmonic  overtones,  but  failed  to  discover  the 
corresponding  under-tone  series  which  make 
the  minor  chord  (under-chord)  the  reciprocal 
of  the  major.  This  discovery  was  reserved  for 
our  own  time,  and  the  application  of  it  to  the 
science  of  harmony  is  only  now  fairly  begun. 
But  much  of  Rameau's  work  is  permanent,  and 
most  of  it  was  so  valuable  that  it  has  formed 
the  foundation  of  harmony  teaching  from  that 
day  to  this.  He  did  much  toward  introducing 
the  system  of  "equal  temperament,"  and  he, 
perhaps  more  than  any  one  else,  determined  the 
abandonment  of  the  old  church  modes  and  the 
establishment  of  our  modern  major  and  minor 
keys.  He  was  a  virtuoso  on  the  harpsichord, 
and  his  compositions  for  that  instrument  had  a 
great  reputation  in  their  day. 

101 


Mameau, 
1683-1764. 


His  theoretical 
work. 


102 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


His  wwk  at  a 
composer. 


Rise,  of  French 
comic  opera. 


Rameau  was  nearly  fifty  years  old  when  he 
wrote  his  first  opera.  His  works  of  this  kind 
are  twenty-two  in  number,  and  are  a  great 
advance  on  Lully's  in  originality,  in  wealth  and 
variety  of  resources,  and  in  dramatic  effective- 
ness. Like  all  epoch-making  minds,  he  was 
violently  attacked  bj*  those  who  were  accus- 
tomed to  the  old,  and  could  not  reconcile  them- 
selves to  the  new  modes  of  musical  expression  y 
however  suitable.  But  his  works  made  their 
way  and  are  justly  regarded  as  among  the  most 
brilliant  achievements  of  the  French  musical 
genius.  His  work,  like  Lully's,  had  for  its 
main  object  truthfulness  of  dramatic  expres- 
sion, and  is  by  this  distinguished  from  the 
Italian  school.  It  surpassed  Lully's  mainly 
in  the  enlargement  of  the  musical  means  of 
expression. 

Rameau, like  Lully,  devoted  himself  to  "Grand 
Opera,"  as  it  is  called — musical  dramas  on  seri- 
ous and  mostly  classical  subjects.  But  it  was 
during  his  time  that  French  operetta  (opera 
comique)  arose,  and  has  held  its  place  beside 
grand  opera  ever  since.  In  1752  a  company  of 
Italian  singers  produced  Italian  comic  opera  in 
Paris,  and  although  they  remained  there  only 
two  years,  they  gave  the  Parisian  public  an 
impulse  which  resulted  in  the  production  of 
French  comic  opera  on  national  everyday  sub- 
jects in  a  free,  unconventional  style.  There 
had  been  French  operettas  before,  but  they 
were  comparatively  insignificant.  Now,  stimu- 
lated by  the  awakened  desire  of  the  public 
and  by  the  reaction  against  the  stiff  and  stilted 
manner  which  had  become  established  as  the 
only  respectable  style  in  French  literature  and 
art,  men  of  ability  began  to  devote  themselves  to 


FRENCH  OPERA. 


103 


comic  opera  in  real  earnest.  First  among  these 
composers  were  Dauvergne  (1713-1797),  an 
Italian;  Duni  (1709-1775);  Philidor  (1726- 
1795),  and  Momigny  (1729-1817).  Their  work 
culminated  in  Gretry  (1741-1813),  in  whose 
works  French  operetta  reached  a  point  perhaps 
never  since  surpassed.  They  are  thoroughly 
representative  of  the  French  dramatic  genius 
in  this  field. 

How  great  was  the  unnaturalness  of  the  intel- 
lectual tendencies  these  men  combatted,  we 
may  learn  by  a  single  example.  In  Louis  XI  Vs 
time,  the  art  of  landscape  gardening  in  France 
was  held  to  require  that  all  the  trees  should  be 
clipped  into  regular  and  fantastic  artificial  forms, 
no  tree  being  allowed  to  develop  itself  natur- 
ally or  express  its  own  nature  in  its  own  way. 
The  mental  tendencies  of  the  French  cultivated 
.classes  were  just  as  artificial  in  all  departments 
of  art  and  literature  as  in  landscape  gardening, 
and  it  was  inevitable  that  a  reaction  should 
take  place  in  the  direction  of  giving  free  play 
to  the  natural  tendencies  of  human  nature. 

This  reaction  culminated  in  the  so-called 
"  philosophy  of  enlightenment,"  of  which  Jean 
Jacques  Rousseau  (1712-1778)  is  the  greatest 
representative.  In  the  thought  of  these  men 
the  ideal  of  the  unrestrained  play  of  all  human 
impulses  was  carried  to  as  great  an  extreme  as 
had  been  the  ideal  of  artificial  restraints  and 
even  distortions  in  their  predecessors.  This 
ideal  culminated  in  the.  license  and  extrava- 
gance of  the  French  Revolution,  extended  its 
influence  to  all  fields  of  mental  activity  and  to 
all  social  relations,  and  has  not  yet  spent  its 
force.  Rousseau  contributed  to  musical  history 
some  important  controversial  writings  directed 


Comijaaers  of 

French  comic 

opera. 


Artificialness 
of  intellectual 
Hfa  in  France 
at  this  period. 


enlighten- 
ment." 


104 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY 


against  the  artificial  forms  prevalent  in  grand 
opera,  a  Dictionary  of  Music,  and  an  original 
operetta  or  melo-drama. 

Other  composers  of  operetta  at  this  period 
and  later  were  D'Alayra  c  (1753-1809),  who 
wrote  about  sixty  operettas  and  operas;  Isouard 
(1777-1818);  Berton  (1766-1844);  Catel  (1773- 
1830);  Boieldieu  (1775-1834);  the  composer  of 
The  (Jaliph  of  Bagdad  and  La  Dame  Blanche; 
Gossec  (1734-1829);  also  an  important  composer 
of  grand  opera  and  of  symphonies  and  chamber 
music,  Mehul  (1763-1817),  best  known  by  his 
opera  of  Joseph  and  his  Brethren;  Herold 
(1791-1833),  best  known  by  his  opera  Zampa, 
the  overture  of  which  is  familiar  to  everybody ; 
Halevy  (1799-1862),  author  of  The  Jewess, 
Auber  (1782-1871),  author  of  Fra  Diavolo  and 
Masianello,  and  Adam  (1803-1856).  These 
names  bring  us  fairl}'  up  to  our  own  time  and 
to  comic  operas,  and,  for  that  matter,  to  serious 
operas,  which  are  still  heard  on  the  French, 
German,  English  and  American  stage. 

Now,  to  go  back  to  the  development  of 
French  Grand  Opera,  the  greatest  name  imme- 
diately succeeding  Rameau  was  Christoph  Sitter 
von  Gluck  (1714-1787),  a  Bohemian,  the  author 
of  Orpheus,  Alceste,  Armida,  Iphegenia  and 
other  grand  operas  on  classical  subjects.  His 
was  a  creative  genius  of  a  high  order,  and  his 
Orpheus,  at  least,  is  still  given  both  in  concert- 
rooms  and  on  the  stage.  He  held  very  strong 
opinions  in  favor  of  dramatic  truthfulness  in 
operatic  music,  as  opposed  to  the  prevalent 
Italian  tendencies ;  and,  as  he  was  unable  to 
make  any  headway  against  the  fashion  of  the 
time  in  his  own  country,  he  went  to  Paris, 
found  there  a  congenial  field,  and  spent  most 


Oluck. 


.His  work  and 
influence. 


FRENCH  OPERA. 


105 


of  his  life  writing  for  the  French  stage  On 
of  the  prominent  characteristics  of  his  opera 
and  of  French  Grand  Opera  since,  has  beei 
recitative,  in  broad,  elaborate  form  fully  ac 
companied  by  the  orchestra,  giving  free,  spon 
taneous  utterance  to  the  emotions  of  the  indi 
vidual  actor  in  the  drama,  as  opposed  to  th, 
formal  ana  of  the  Italian  opera,  where  th. 
musical  predominates  over  the  dramatic  ele 
ment.  It  is  the  recitative  that  primarily  char 
actenzes  the  French  Grand  Opera. 

Two  Italian  composers  deserve  to  be  men 
tioned  here,  because  they  were  both  strongly  in- 
fluenced by  the  works  of  Gluck,  and  both  wrote 
more  or  less  for  the  Paris  stage  These  are 
SaUeri  (1750-1828),  who  spent  most  of  his  life 
in  Vienna,  but  wrote  The  Danaides  for  Paris- 
and  Spontini  (1784-1 851),  for  a  long  time  direc^ 
tor  of  the  Royal  Opera  at  Berlin,  whose  best 
known  opera  is  La  Vestale. 

The  next  great  name  in  the  annals  of  French 
Grand  Opera  is  M.  L.  Cherubini  (1 7(50-1 842) 
He  was  an  Italian,  born  in  Florence,  trained  a 
-musician,  and   a   composer  of  Italian   operas 
until   he  went   to  Paris  in   1786.     A  visit   to 
Vienna  enabled  him  to  hear  some  of  Haydn's 
symphonies,  which  produced  a  great  effect  upon 
him,  and  influenced  profoundly  his  whole  future 
tivity  as   a   composer.     His   style  is   severe 
and  classical.     His  operas,  Medea.  The  Water- 
carrier    Faniska,  The  Abencerrages,  Lodoiska 
and  others,  give  him  a  very  high  place  as  an 
operatic  composer.     His  Requiem  is  considered 
the  noblest  Catholic  church  music  since  Pales- 
Tina,  and    he   wrote    many   other    important 
works.  From  1816  to  his  death  he  was  Director 
the  Paris  Conservatory  of  Music,  and  Pro- 


LISBON  Xlf. 


Salieri  and 
Spontint. 


Cherubini. 


His  operas 

and  other 

works. 


K6 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  XII. 


Meyerbeer. 


His  operas 

and  heir 

character- 

istics. 


fessor  of  Composition  there.  As  the  titles  of 
his  operas  show,  classical  subjects,  taken  from 
the  Greek  mythology,  began  now  to  give  way 
to  other  serious  subjects  in  Grand  Opera.  From 
his  time  on,  the  characteristic  distinction  be- 
tween Grand  Opera  and  Comic  Opera  has  been 
that  Comic  Opera  admits  spoken  dialogue, 
while  in  the  Grand  Opera  everything  is  sung, 
the  dialogue  and  soliloquies  being  mostly  in 
recitative. 

It  is  surprising  how  many  of  the  great  names 
among  French  Grand  Opera  composers  are 
names  of  foreigners.  Lully  and  Cherubini  were 
Italians;  Gluck  was  a  Bohemian;  Gossec  was 
a  Belgian.  To  these  names  we  have  to  add 
that  of  Jacob  Meyerbeer  (1794-1864),  a  German 
Jew,  born  in  Berlin,  where  his  father  was  a. 
wealthy  banker.  He  was  a  fellow  student  with 
Weber,  under  the  Abbe  Yogler,  in  Vienna, 
found  his  congenial  place  in  Paris,  and  wrote  a 
series  of  Grand  Operas  for  the  Paris  stage. 
The  greatest  of  them  are  Eobert  the  Devil, 
The  Huguenots  and  The  Prophet.  Meyerbeer 
had  great  gifts  and  much  skill  as  a  composer ; 
but  he  wrote  for  effect,  more  to  please  and 
amuse  than  to  elevate  the  Parisian  public,  and 
stands  lower  in  the  estimation  of  musicians 
than  he  would  if  his  aims  had  been  higher.  He 
helped  to  degrade  French  taste  and  to  make 
Wagner's  success  in  Paris  impossible. 

Since  his  time  the  greatest  names  in  French 
opera  have  been  Ambroise  Thomas  (born  1811), 
who  has  written  many  operas,  both  serious  and 
comic,  Mignon  being  the  best  known;  and 
Charles  Gounod  (born  1818),  best  known  by 
his  masterpiece,  Faust.  Hector  Berlioz  (1803- 
1869)  occupies  a  unique  position  in  Frenqh 


FRKNCH  OPERA. 


107 


Offenbach. 


opera,  and,  indeed,  in  French  music  generally       L'"°»* 
His   operas,    Benvenuto    Cellini,  Beatrice  and  ' 
Benedick   The  Trojans  in  Carthage  and   The 
JBril  of   Troy,  had  no  success  in  his  lifetime. 
The  same  is  true   of  his  symphonies,  cantatas 
and  sacred  music.     He  is  only  now  beginning 
to  come  into  vogue. 

Camille   Saint-Saens    (born    1835)    has   also 
written  good   operas.      But  comic '  opera  has    *fc~~ 
been  the  characteristic    field  of  French  com- 
posers since  the  time  of  Boieldieu,  that  is,  since 
about  1800.      Jacques    Offenbach  (1819-1880) 
another  foreigner,  a  German  Jew,  born  in  Co- 1 
logne,  represents  the   culmination  of  the   ten- 
dency toward  burlesque  in  French  comic  opera 
He  flourished  during  the  corrupt  period  of  the  I 
icond  Empire,  and   wrote    burlesque  full   of 
equivocal  situations  for  the  amusement  of  the 
Parisians.     He  had  much   originality   and   his 
melodies   are  often   striking.       His   operettas: 
Orpheus  in  the    Underworld,  La  Belle  Helene 
Blue  Beard,  The  Grand  Duchesse  of  Gerolstein\ 
and  others  have   made  their  way  all  over  the 
civilized    world.     E.    Audran    (born    1842)   is 
known  in  this  country  by  his  operettas,  Olivette\ 
and  the  Mascotte;  Robert  Planquette  (born  1850) 
by  his    Chimes    of  Normandy;     Victor  Massel 
(born  1822),  by  his  opera,  Paul  and   Virginia] 
he  has  written  many  others),  and ./.  E.  Massenet 
(born  1842),  by  his  opera,  Don  Csesar  de  Bazan. 
Ihe  last  two  are  professors  in  the  Paris  Con- 
servatory and  have  composed  much  in   other 
fields. 


Audran, 
ki^quette 
Masse, 

Jfassenet, 


108 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


QUESTIONS. 

Who  was  the  first  important  French  opera  composer 
after  Lully  ? 

What  was  his  rank  as  a  theorist  ? 

In  what  special  way  did  he  advance  the  science  of 
harmony  ? 

How  old  was  he  when  he  began  writing  operas  ? 

How  were  they  received  and  why  ? 

In  what  were  they  an  advance  on  Lully's  ? 

When  did  French  operetta  begin  to  be  prominent  ? 

To  what  was  the  rise  of  operetta  due  ? 

Name  some  composers  in  this  field  ? 

What  name  marks  the  culmination  of  this  species? 

What  were  the  intellectual  tendencies  of  the  time,  as 
illustrated  in  French  landscape  gardening  ? 

What  was  meant  by  the  "philosophy  of  enlighten- 
ment?" 

Who  was  its  greatest  representative  ? 

Give  dates  ? 

Name  some  of  the  important  composers  of  French 
comic  opera  up  to  our  own  time  ? 

Name  the  great  composer  who  succeeded  Hameau  ? 

Give  dates  ? 

Name  some  of  his  operas? 

Name  and  describes  a  prominent  characteristic  of  his 
operas  and  of  French  grand  opera  since  ? 

Name  two  Italian  composers  who  were  strongly  influ- 
enced by  Gluck  ? 

Who  was  the  next  great  composer  for  the  Paris  stage  ? 

Name  some  of  his  operas  ? 

What  is  now  the  distinction  between  grand  opera  and 
comic  opera? 

Give  an  account  of  Meyerbeer's  work  ? 

Give  dates  and  name  his  important  operas? 

Name  the  greatest  French  opera  composers  since  his 
time  and  those  of  operetta  ? 


LESSON  XIII. 

GERMAN     OPERA 


sfsrSr-'sSsSS 

been  graceful  melodies  and  passionate      If  hU 

temporary   popular  success  to  ideal 
so  degenerated   and  finallv  lost  tho 

,-»•*•     4_r  11.  ******** jr      iOou     l/UG 

the  public.     His  genius  raised  the 
fg  opera    for  a   short   time,  to  a  high 


109 


LESSON 


Opera  in 
Hamburg. 


Reiser. 


110 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  XIH. 


Xattheson. 
Telemann. 


The  "Sing- 
spiel." 


Mozart, 
1756-1791. 


In  the  meantime,  Hamburg  had  greatly 
profited  by  the  work  of  some  remarkable  men, 
especially  Johann  Mattheson  (1681-1764),  a 
composer  of  talent,  an  excellent  theorist  and  a 
highly  accomplished  musician  in  every  respect ; 
George  Philip  Telemann  (1681-1767)  and, 
finally,  of  Haendel  himself,  who  went  there  as  a 
youth  of  eighteen,  played  in  the  orchestra,  and 
wrote  his  first  opera  for  the  Hamburg  stage. 

The  beginnings  of  German  opera  proper,  in 
Hamburg  as  elsewhere,  are  to  be  found  in  the 
King-spiel.  The  Sing-spiel,  like  the  English 
Ballad-opera  and  the  French  Vaudeville,  was 
originally  a  light  play  interspersed  with  popu- 
lar songs,  generally  ballads,  apt  to  be  of  a 
satirical  tendency  and  with  a  short  refrain. 
Such  plays  were  popular  all  through  the  period 
when  Italian  opera  was  fashionable,  and  were 
often  composed  by  writers  of  high  standing  in  the 
various  capitals  and  musical  centres  of  Europe. 
W.  A.  Mozart  (1756-1791),  in  Vienna,  some  of 
whose  best  operas  were  written  to  Italian  texts, 
and  most  of  whose  work  is  quite  as  much  Italian 
as  German,  adopted  this  form,  used  German 
words  and  subjects  which,  if  not  characteristi- 
cally German,  were  no  more  Italian  than  Ger- 
man, and  made  real  operas  out  of  them.  These 
works,  especially  his  Magic  Flute  and  his  Ab- 
duction from  the  Seraglio,  may  be  looked  on  as 
addressed  more  to  the  German  than  to  the 
Italian  taste.  But  this  can  hardly  be  said  of 
his  Don  Juan  and  The  Marriage  of  Figaro. 

Mozart  was,  in  short,  a  German,  with  Ger- 
man feelings  and  tastes,  but  trained  in  the 
prevalent  Italian  school.  He  never  departed 
in  any  essential  particular  from  the  princi- 
ples of  Italian  opera.  The  plan  of  his  works 


GERMAN  OPERA. 


Ill 


is  the  traditional  one;  the  arias  are,  to  all 
intents  and  purposes,  Italian  arias.  But  hav- 
ing German  leanings  and  being  an  original 
-creative  genius  of  the  first  rank,  his  Italian 
schooling  was  sufficiently  modified,  especially 
when  he  wrote  from  the  Sing-spiel  standpoint, 
to  give  his  works,  in  part,  a  quasi-national 
character.  The  Magic  Flute,  in  fact,  is  com- 
monly regarded  as  a  real  German  opera.  But 
its  arias  and  its  forms  betray  Mozart's  Italian 
training.  It  is  really  a  mixture  of  styles,  but 
with  strong  German  tendencies. 

L.  von  Beethoven  (1770-1827)  made  a  single 
attempt  at  opera,  and  aimed  to  make  his  Fidelia 
a  German  opera.  So  it  was,  if  we  regard  only 
its  serious  aims,  its  earnestness  and  depth  of 
feeling  and  the  absence  of  all  concessions  to 
the  vanity  of  solo  singers.  In  these  respects, 
indeed,  it  is  an  advance  beyond  Mozart.  But 
Beethoven  established  no  new  principles  of 
form  or  content  in  the  music-drama,  and  the 
subject  of  Fidelio  is  cosmopolitan  rather  than 
German.  In  short,  what  Beethoven  did  was 
merely  to  inculcate  seriousness  and  elevation 
of  aim  in  this  one  example.  But  these  qualities 
.are  not  necessarily  confined  to  Germany.  To 
create  a  really  characteristic  German  music- 
drama  something  more  was  needed  than  a  mere 
protest  against  the  shallowness,  the  brilliant 
:sensationalism  and  the  seductive  tunefulness 
of  current  Italian  opera  as  represented  by  Bee- 
thoven's great  contemporary,  Rossini.  Fidelio 
is  German  in  that  it  represents  an  earnestness 
and  elevation  of  tone  much  more  frequently 
found  among  German  than  among  Italian  com- 
posers since  Palestrina.  But  it  is,  after  all,' 
Beethoven  rather  than  Germany  that  speaks  in 


r  XIII. 


Beethoven, 

1770-1827. 


112 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


Weber, 


it.  It  is  an  opera  which  represents  an  indi- 
vidual rather  than  a  nation,  and  it  does  not 
mark  the  beginning  of  a  national  style  of  opera. 
Besides,  it  has  serious  defects  as  a  singable  and 
dramatic  work.  Beethoven's  great  field  lay  in 
the  symphony,  not  in  the  opera.  Schubert's 
attempts  at  dramatic  composition  were  still 
less  successful. 

What  neither  Beethoven  nor  Schubert  could 
do  for  German  opera  was  done  by  a  great  con- 
temporary of  theirs,  Carl  Maria  von  Weber 
(1786-1826).  The  son  of  a  theatre  manager 
and  actor,  Weber  was  familiar  with  stage  effects 
from  his  earliest  childhood.  A  roving  life 
made  him  familiar  with  German  feelings,  Ger- 
man legends,  German  modes  of  thinking  in  all 
classes  of  society.  His  training  was  German 
rather  than  Italian,  and  was  picked  up  in  a 
desultory  way  from  a  variety  of  masters.  He 
acquired  experience  as,  an  opera  conductor 
when  he  was  very  young,  taking  his  first  con- 
ductorship  at  Breslau  when  he  was  only  eigh- 
teen years  of  age.  Thus  he  was  amply  equipped 
to  write  operas  in  the  German  spirit  to  German 
text,  embod}ring  German  legends,  ideas  and 
feelings.  This  he  did  in  his  great  opera,  Der 
Freischutz,  written  for  Dresden  in  1821.  He 
had  been  called  there  for  the  express  purpose 
of  conducting  German  opera  in  a  theatre  espe- 
cially set  apart  for  it,  in  opposition  to  the  es- 
tablished Italian  one,  which  principally  enjoyed 
the  favor  of  the  court.  He  had  a  hard  fight, 
meeting  with  all  sorts  of  opposition.  But  Der 
Freischutz  was  such  a  master  work,  it  was  so 
original  and  fresh,  it  so  characteristically  em- 
bodied the  peculiar  romantic  spirit  of  the  Ger- 
many of  that  day,  it  appealed  so  strongly  to 


GERMAN  OPERA, 


113 


national  and  patriotic  feelings  that  it  overcame 
all  opposition.  No  opera  was  ever  more  popu- 
lar. It  went  all  over  Germany,  it  aroused 
popular  enthusiasm,  it  stimulated  hosts  of  imi- 
tators among  young  composers;  m  short,  it 
marks  an  epoch  in  musical  history  and  may 
fairly  be  considered  as  the  beginning  of  Ger- 
man opera.  Two  other  operas  followed  this, 
Euryanthe  and  Oberon,  both  of  high  rank. 
Weber's  earlier  attempts,  Abu  Hassan,  Peter 
Schmoll  and  Sylvana  are  less  important. 

With  Weber  begins  the  great  Romantic 
period  of  musical  art.  We  have  already  ap- 
plied the  term  "  classical  "  to  Palestrina  (see 
Lesson  XI.)  on  the  ground  that  he  combined 
nobility  of  Content  (what  he  had  to  express) 
with  perfection  of  Form  (mode  of  expression), 
and  that  he  exerted  permanent,  profound  and 
far-reaching  influence  on  the  future  course  of 
musical  history.  In  this  sense,  Bach  and 
Haendel  were  "  classical"  composers,  so  were 
Haydn,  Mozart  and  Beethoven  in  the  field  of 
instrumental  music.  But  when,  through  the 
labors  of  these  and  other  great  men,  musical 
Form,  the  whole  technic  of  musical  composi- 
tion, had  been  developed  to  the  point  where  it 
was  available  to  express  freely  and  perfectly 
all  phases  of  human  feeling,  there  came  a  time 
when  men  began  to  lay  more  stress  on  the 
emotions  to  be  expressed  than  on  the  form  of 
the  expression.  The  "  Classical  "  movement 
was  essentially  a  development  of  Form.  The 
"  Romantic  "  movement,  beginning  with  Weber, 
was  essentially  an  attempt  to  utter,  perfectly 
if  possible,  but  at  any  rate  to  utter,  whether 
perfectly  or  not,  feelings  remote  from  every- 
day experience,  aspirations  after  ideals  unat- 


LESSON  XI It. 


Beginning  of 

the  Romantic 

Period. 


Thf  "Clasni- 

with  the"  Ro- 
nutntic"  move- 
ment. 


114 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


tained  and  perhaps  unattainable,  dissatisfac- 
tion with  present  surroundings,  longings  after 
ideal  conditions  more  or  less  vaguely  appre- 
hended in  imagination.  The  Romantic  move- 
ment in  music  was  nearly  contemporary  with  a 
similar  movement  in  German  literature,  and 
was  a  part  of  the  same  great  movement  of 
mind.  As  Dr.  Langhans  has  pointed  out  in 
Chapter  XI  of  his  "  History  of  Music,"  the 
tendency  to  seek  relief  from  present  unsatis- 
factory conditions  in  the  imaginary  surround- 
ings of  an  ideal  world  is  lay  no  means  new,  nor 
is  it  confined  to  any  period  of  the  world's 
history.  But  it  shows  itself  with  peculiar  force 
whenever  outward  conditions  become  peculiarly 
unsatisfactory  or  painful.  Whenever  men  are 
oppressed  with  pain,  hunger,  want,  disappoint- 
ment of  any  sort,  they  turn  for  relief  to  the 
world  of  the  imagination,  and  this  life  of  the 
imagination  sooner  or  later  finds  expression  in 
some  form  of  art. 

The  Romantic  movement  in  German  litera- 
ture and  German  music  was  closely  connected 
with  the  oppressions,  confusions,  privations 
and  political  and  social  disturbances  of  the 
Napoleonic  era.  Beethoven,  for  a  time,  was  a 
worshipper  of  Napoleon,  as  the  world's  great 
deliverer  and  the  champion  of  Liberty, Equality 
and  Fraternit}r.  The  noblest  hopes  and  aspira- 
tions of  the  time  of  the  French  Revolution  find 
expression  in  Beethoven's  music.  But  when 
Napoleon  became  a  self-seeking  despot,  the 
oppressor  instead  of  the  deliverer  of  Europe ; 
when  governments  fell  before  him,  when  whole 
peoples  were  thrown  into  confusion,  homes 
were  destroyed,  women  were  maltreated,  men 
were  butchered  by  the  thousand  for  his 


Dentition  of  the 
Romantic 

movement  in 
Germany. 


GERMAN  OPERA. 


115 


aggrandizement;  when  all  Europe  seemed  to 
be  crushed  under  his  despotic  sway,  and  every 
one  seemed  powerless  to  cure  the  evils  of  the 
time,  men's  dissatisfaction,  aspiration,  anxiety, 
despair,  anger,  fear,  hope,  denied  their  natural 
outlet  of  action,  found  relief  in  the  fields  of 
literature  and  art.  Thus  was  born  the  German 
romantic  literature  and,  a  little  later,  the  Ger- 
man romantic  music. 

Weber's  "  Der  Freischiitz  "  was  popular  not 
only  because  its  subject  and  treament  were 
Tomartic,  but  because  they  were  national. 
Following  him  came  a  host  of  lesser  competi- 
tors. The  greatest  of  them  was  undoubtedly 
Heinrich  Marschner  (1796-1861).  He  was  a 
•highly-educated,  liberal-minded  man,  a  musi- 
cian of  great  accomplishments  and  a  composer 
of  marked  talent.  From  1831  to  1859  he  was 
conductor  of  the  Royal  Opera  at  Hanover. 
His  greatest  opera,  Hans  Heiling,  forms  a  sort 
of  connecting  link  between  Weber  and  Wagner. 
He  wrote  a  number  of  other  operas,  of  which 
only  two  survive,  The  Vampire  and  The  Tem- 
plar and  the  Jewess,  founded  on  Sir  Walter 
.Scott's  Ivanhoe. 

Next  to  Marschner  in  importance  comes 
Ludwig  Spohr  (1784-1859).  His  greatest  and 
"best  known  opera,  Jessonda.  was  first  given  in 
1823. 

The  romantic  movement  in  opera  culminated 
in  the  work  of  Richard  Wanner  (1813-1883), 
certainly  one  of  the  greatest  minds  of  our  time 
and  probably  one  of  the  greatest  yet  produced 
by  the  human  race.  He  was  born  in  Leipzig 
during  the  year  of  the  great  battle  there  iff 
which  Napoleon  received  his  first  check.  His 
•childhood  and  youth  coincided  with  the  re- 


LlSSONXIII 


Marschner. 


Spohr. 


Richard 

Wanner, 
1813-1883. 


116 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


t 


His  youthful 

characteristics 

aiul  mental 

activity. 


actionary  years  when  the  defeat  of  the  great 
French  emperor  had  strengthened  all  the  other 
European  sovereigns  against  all  liberal  tenden- 
cies in  France  and  among  their  own  subjects. 
It  was  a  time  of  dissatisfaction,  of  suppressed 
aspiration  and  longing  among  the  nations. 
The  fceaven  of  the  great  ideas  of  the  French 
Revolution  was  working  in  the  mind  of  Europe,, 
and  fresh  outbreaks  of  the  revolutionary  spirit 
were  gradually  preparing. 

Young  Wagner  was  of  an  ardent  tempera- 
ment, had  a  clear,  strong  intellect,  a  glowing 
imagination,  and  shared  enthusiastically  in  the 
liberal,  patriotic  aspirations,  enthusiasms  and 
disappointments  of  his  time.  His  early  study 
of  the  piano  came  to  nothing,  because  he  could 
not  be  made  to  practice  the  necessary  technical 
exercises,  and  there  is  no  record  of  any  other 
systematic  study  of  music  in  his  early  years. 
After  his  father's  death,  which  happened  in  his 
infancy,  his  mother  married  an  actor,  Ludwig 
Geyer,  a  cultivated,  intelligent  man,  who  did 
much  for  Wagner's  education.  The  family 
then  removed  to  Dresden,  where  he  became 
interested  in  ancient  languages  and  in  the 
Greek  literature,  especially,  and  afterwards  in 
Shakespeare.  His  reading  of  the  latter  stimu- 
lated him  to  write  a  tragedy  in  which,  as  he 
informs  us  in  an  autobiographical  sketch,  he 
killed  off  forty-two  of  his  characters  before  the 
end  of  the  second  act,  and  had  to  let  most  of 
them  reappear  as  ghosts  in  order  to  keep  up 
the  action.  This  play  occupied  him  for  two 
years.  Such  energetic  mental  activity  as  this, 
in  a  mere  child,  was  prophetic  of  the  creative 
power  which  afterwards  engaged  the  attention 
of  the  whole  civilized  world. 


GERMAN  OPFRA. 


117 


The  first  profound  impression  made  on  him 
"by  music  was  at  one  of  the  early  performances 
of  "  Der  Freischiitz."  His  mother,  again  a 
widow,  soon  after  removed  to  Leipzig,  and 
here  he  made  the  acquaintance  of  the  Beethoven 
symphonies  and  of  the  same  master's  music  to 
Goethe's  JEgmont.  This  stirred  him  up  to  write 
music  to  his  own  tragedy.  He  found  he  knew 
nothing  of  harmon3r  and  that  he  needed  it,  so 
he  undertook  to  prepare  himself  for  composi- 
tion in  a  week's  stud}-  of  a  text-book,  without 
a  teacher!  Characteristic,  this,  of  his  un- 
bounded self-confidence,  independence,  and  also 
of  his  native  energy  and  spontaneous  mental 
activity.  His  whole  student  life  was  full  of 
just  this  sort  of  self-guided  activity.  His  mind 
responded  to  whatever  stimulus  suited  its 
peculiarities,  and  whatever  he  became  inter- 
ested in  he  pursued  with  resistless  energy  until 
some  new  interest  turned  his  intellectual  forces 
into  a  new  channel. 

It  was  during  these  student  years  in  Leipzig 
that  he  determined  to  become  a  musician,  pur- 
sued his  musical  studies,  partly  under  excellent 
teachers,  for  he  did,  at  last,  find  out  that 
teachers  could  help  him,  arid  wrote  considera- 
ble music,  of  no  value  except  as  apprentice 
work  preparatory  to  his  future  creative  career. 
He  developed  himself  on  many  sides,  not  only 
by  musical  and  literary  study,  but  by  practical 
acquaintance  with  the  stage,  availing  himself 
of  the  opportunities  given  him  by  his  relatives, 
some  of  whom  were  connected  with  the  theatre, 
making  the  acquaintance  of  many  works  and  writ- 
ing an  opera,  which  was  not  performed.  He  also 
began  writing  criticisms  which  showed  much 
vigor  of  intellect  and  keenness  of  perception. 


I.»880N  XIII 

Repioval  to 

Leipzig  and 

stiide-nt,  life 

there. 


Musical 
studies. 


113 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


LESSON  XIII. 

Conductor  in 
gdtburg, 
1834. 


Conductor  at 

JConipx'Mtrg 

and  Riga, 

18B-6. 


Composes 
"  Rienzi." 


Goes  to  Paris. 
Poverty. 


This    brings   us  to    1834,   the   year    of    his 
majority.     In  the  fall  of  that  year  he  became 
onductor  at  the  Magdeburg  theatre,  a  position, 
which  he  held  two  years,  profiting  greatly  by 
lis  experience.     He  studied  thoroughly  a  great 
number   of  the  current    German,   French    and 
[talian  operas,  and  learned  a  greal  deal   more 
irom  his  work  in  preparing  them  for  stage  per- 
formance than  he  could   ever  have   learned  in 
any   other  way.     He    wrote    here    his    second 
opera,  on  Shakespeare's  "  Measure  for  Measure," 
and  had  it  performed,  but  with  very  incomplete 
success.     In  1836  he  was   conductor  at  Kb'nigs- 
oerg,  and  the  next  year  at  Riga,  but    became 
more  and  more  dissatisfied  with  the  deficiencies 
inevitable  in  the  appointments  of  the   theatres- 
of  these  small  towns,  and  more   and  more  con- 
vinced that  they  were  no  place  for  him  and  his- 
work.     They  had  served  his    ends  for  appren- 
tice  experience,  and  he   had    outgrown    them. 
He  had  planned  and  finished  a  grand  opera  on 
the  story  of  "  Rienzi,"  the    last  of  the   Roman 
Tribunes,  an  opera  which    demanded   the   full 
resources  of  a  first-class  stage.    With  character- 
istic   audacity   he    determined    to   strike    out 
boldly  for  success  on  the  Parisian  stage.  Noth- 
ing less  than  this   would  content  this  plucky 
young   fellow.     So  to  Paris   he   went,    sailing 
first  to  London  through  the  Baltic  and  North 
Seas,    meeting    with   storms,   picking   up   sea 
legends    from    the    Norwegian    sailors,  seeing 
much  of  the  coast  scenery  of  the  Baltic  and 
conceiving  the   plan   of  his  next  opera,  "  The 
Flying  Dutchman."     But  when  he  got  to  Paris,, 
success  did  not  come.     Meyerbeer  tried  to  help 
him  secure  a  hearing  for  his  Rienzi,  but  failed. 
He  had  no  money,  he  lived  from  hand  to  mouthr 


GERMAN  OPERA. 


by  doing  hack  work  for  the  music  dealers  and 
by  writing  for  the  newspapers.  There  'was 
absolutely  no  opportunity  for  him  in  Paris. 
He  stayed  there  in  poverty  until  the  spring  of 
1842,  wrote  his  "Faust"  overture  and  his 
"  Flying  Dutchman  "  during  the  interval,  and 
tried  to  get  them  performed  in  Germany.  In 
this  he  at  last  succeeded.  "  Rienzi  "  was  ac- 
cepted in  Dresden  and  the  "Flying  Dutchman" 
in  Berlin,  both  in  the  spring  of  1842.  He'went 
to  Dresden  to  supervise  the  production  of 
"  Rienzi,"  and  was  soon  appointed  to  the  con- 
ductorship  forme'rly  held  by  Weber.  Now  be- 
gan his  great  career  as  a  composer.  "  Tann- 
hiiuser  "  was  given  in  1845,  but  was  so  original 
in  style,  so  different  from  anything  to  which 
the  public  was  accustomed,  that  hardly  any- 
body liked  it.  and  the  critics  fell  foul  of  it  in 
the  savage  way  to  which  every  one  of  his 
predecessors  in  original  musical  creation  had 
to  submit.  It  was  no  new  phenomenon  in 
musical  history.  He  wrote  "Lohengrin"  in 
1847,  but  could  not  get  it  performed  in  his  own 
theater. 

Then  came  the  storm}'  year  of  18*8,  a  year 
of  uprisings  against  oppression,  thrones  totter- 
ing, aristocracies  shaking  in  their  shoes,  but 
ending  in  hopeless  submission  for  the  masses 
and  death  or  exile  for  many  of  the  noblest  men 
of  Germany.  Wagner,  always  a  liberal,  took 
active  part  in  the  revolutionaiy  movement,  and 
when  the  end  came,  had  to  take  refuge  in 
Switzerland.  In  Zurich  he  lived  until  1859, 
occupy  ing  himself  largety  with  writing  contro- 
versial pamphlets  in  which  he  set  forth  his  own 
art  beliefs,  his  theories  of  the  relation  of  music 
to  the  drama  and  his  opinions  on  things  in 


Fauat  over- 
hire, 
flying 

DutchrtMn. 


Conductor  in 
Dresden,  1842. 


Tannhauser, 
1845. 


Lohengrin, 
1847. 


Revolution 
and  exilf,  1848. 


Hi  s  contro- 
versial 
icritinps. 


120 


LhSSUA'S  2N  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


7/,'v  audacity. 


ffmunds  for 

Jiix  xetf-confl- 

detice. 


flummary  of 

/u'.<  ill  -til  of 


general  and  art  matters  in  particular.  He 
violently  attacked  not  only  the  absurdities  and 
trivialities  of  the  Italian  opera,  but  Meyerbeer, 
Mendelssohn,  in  short  most  of  the  reigning 
powers,  saving  Beethoven,  whose  worshiper 
he  always  declared  himself  to  be;  and  whose 
work  he  aimed  to  continue  and  enlarge.  He 
did  not  stick  at  trifles,  this  man  whose  operas 
the  public  would  not  listen  to.  Nothing  was 
too  audacious  for  him.  He  went  his  own  way, 
thought  his  own  thoughts,  expressed  them 
publicly  in  no  measured  terms,  knocked  the 
popular  idols  from  their  pedestals  right  and 
left  with  sledge-hammer  blows,  set  up  his  own 
productions  in  their  place  and  loudly  called  on 
the  outraged  devotees  to  fall  down  and  worship 
the  new  divinities  on  pain  of  being  considered 
stupid,  dull  Philistines,  devoid  of  all  true 
artistic  intelligence. 

In  most  men  this  would  have  been  insane 
conceit.  In  Wagner  it  was  self-confidence, 
based  on  a  true  insight.  He  had  seen,  clearly, 
truths  which  the  greatest  of  his  predecessors 
had  at  best  dimly  divined.  "  The  Music  of  the 
Future  "  was  the  title  of  one  of  his  pamphlets 
in  which  he  set  forth  the  theories  on  which  he 
worked.  It  became  a  rallying  cry  for  his 
friends,  and  a  phrase  of  contempt  in  the  mouths 
of  his  enemies.  The  central  point  of  his  con- 
ception, briefly  stated,  is  as  follows:  The  ideal 
art-work,  which  is  to  meet  the  rational  require- 
ments of  the  future,  must  combine  all  the  arts 
in  the  service  of  one  poetic  conception.  Music 
must  not,  as  in  the  Italian  opera,  claim  pre- 
cedence of  poetry,  nor  must  poetry  exclude 
music,  because  music  is  capable  of  vastly  in- 
tensifying the  emotional  effect  of  the  words. 


GERMAN  OPERA. 


121 


Combined  with  these  two  must  be  the  added 
effect  of  the  other  fine  arts — painting,  sculpture, 
acting,  pantomine,  dancing,  everything,  in  short, 
which  can  add  to  the  clearness  of  the  author's 
conception  and  enhance  the  effect  upon  the  im- 
agination. No  concessions  must  be  made  to  the 
vanity  of  singers,  none  to  intellectual  supine- 
ness  or  indolence  on  the  part  of  the  audience. 
The  creative  artist's  poetic  ideal  must  be  su- 
preme. The  personality  of  the  interpreters 

st  be  sunk  in  the  realization  of  this  ideal. 
In  short,  the  art-work  of  the  future  was  to  be 
a  music-drama,  setting  forth  in  beautiful  form 
some  noble  conception,  and  combining  the 
resources  of  all  the  arts  for  its  worthy  embodi- 
ment. Each  art  must  sacrifice  its  supremacy 
to  artistic  unit}'  of  effect. 

It  was  not  enough  for  Wagner  to  set  forth 
this  conception  in  glowing  colors  in  his  numer- 
ous pamphlets ;  he  attacked  all  existing,  ao 
well  as  all  previous  art-work,  'as  unworthy  of 
this,  the  only  true  ideal.  He  proclaimed  the 
inferiority  of  the  spoken- drama,  of  purely  in- 
strumental music.  He  affirmed  that  Beethoven, 
the  greatest  of  instrumental  writers,  after  bring- 
ing pure  music  to  the  utmost  limit  of  its  de- 
velopment, had  felt  the  necessity  of  combining 
it  with  words,  and  that  the  Ninth  Symphony 
pointed  the  way  to  the  art-work  of  the  future, 
which  it  was  Wagner's  mission  to  proclaim  to 
the  world. 

He  did  more  than  theorize  and  controvert. 
He  embodied  his  theoretical  principles  in  a 
series  of  stupendous  master-works,  which,  in 
spite  of  the  violent  storm  of  opposition  they 
had  to  encounter,  both  on  account  of  their 
novelty  and  on  account  of  the  personal  enmity 


His  attack  on 
other  produc- 
tions. 


Hi&  great 
Master -works. 


122 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


their  author  had  incurred  by  his  audacious 
polemics  against  established  and  long -cherished 
ideals,  forced  their  way  to  recognition,  chal- 
lenged, and  gradually  commanded  the  respect 
and  admiration  of  the  best  minds,  and  stand 
to-day  acknowledged  as  «,mong  the  most  colos- 
sal products  of  human  genius.  He  had  now 
reached  his  intellectual  maturity,  and  had  made 
clear  his  own  ideals  to  his  own  mind,  partly  by 
his  attempts  to  embody  them  in  his  music- 
dramas,  and  partly  by  his  efforts  to  explain 
them  to  others  in  his  controversal  writings. 
Henceforth,  he  looked  not  only  on  "Rienzi" 
and  "The  Flying  Dutchman,"  but  also  on 
"  Tannhauser "  and  "  Lohengrin,"  far  in  ad- 
vance of  popular  appreciation  as  they  then 
were,  as  mere  apprentice  work — the  necessary 
preparation  for  his  mature  period  of  produc- 
tion. In  "  Tristan  and  Isolde "  he  fully  and 
satisfactorily  embodied  his  ripe  views,  and*  fol- 
lowed it  up  with  his  great  tetralogy,  based  on 
the  "  Niebelungen  Lied,"  called, "  Der  Ring  des 
Niebelungen,"  a  series  of  four  connected  music- 
dramas,  "D.as  Rhinegold,"  "Die  Walkiire," 
"Siegfried"  and  "  Gotterdamerung."  The 
list  of  his  masterpieces  closes  with  "  Die  Meis- 
tersinger,"  his  sole  effort  at  comedy,  and  "  Par- 
sifal," which  deals  with  the  legend  of  the  Holy 
Grail. 

In  consonance  with  the  principles  above 
stated,  these  works  show  important  peculiari- 
ties of  structure.  They  dispense  entirely  with 
the  traditional  operatic  and  instrumental  forms. 
There  are  no  arias,  no  "closed"  forms  any- 
where. Wherever  the  action  goes  on  the  music- 
goes  on.  The  continuous  flow  of  melody  cor- 
responds to  the  emotional  current  of  the- 


Tristan  and 
Isolde. 


The  Niebel- 
ungen. 
tetralogy. 


The  Master- 
singers. 


Structure  of 
these  music- 
dramas. 


6KRMAN  OPERA. 


123 


drama.  The  vocal  parts  are  more  impassioned  L»9o*XI 
declamation  than  singing  in  the  traditional 
sense.  The  orchestra  has  a  principal  place  in- 
stead of  being  subordinated  to  a  mere  accom 
paniment.  Each  leading  character  is  indicated 
or  suggested  by  a  characteristic  "  leading-mo- 
tive," and  these  motives  are  continually  inter- 
mingled in  the  orchestra  in  a  complex  web  of 
melodies  varying  according  to  the  dramatic 
situations,  and  to  the  progress  of  events  upon 
the  stage.  Nowhere  is  the  attention  of  the 
auditor  withdrawn  for  an  instant  from  the  mat- 
ter in  hand.  All  the  elements  present  combine 
into  one  grand,  artistic  whole.  From  the  be- 
ginning the  interest  is  concentrated  on  the 
progress  of  events,  until  the  drama  culminates 
in  a  magnificent  climax.  In  all  the  essential 
requirements  of  an  art-work,  unity,  variety,  sym- 
metry, contrast,  climax,  these  music-dramas 
are  ideally  perfect. 

In  harmony,  Wagner  was  an  innovator.  The 
essential  peculiarity  of  his  harmonies  lies  in  his 
recognition  of  the  value  and  naturalness  of  the 
third  and  sixth  relationships.*  There  had 
been  hints  of  this  in  Beethoven,  Schubert,  and 
others.  But  in  Wagner  the  principle  comes, 
for  the  first  time,  to  its  full  recognition  and 
application.  He  broadened  the  conception  of 
tonality  to  its  utmost  limits,  to  the  utter  confu- 
sion of  contemporary  theorists.  No  stricture 
on  him  was  more  common  than  the  assertion 
that  his  music  was  devoid  of  tonality.  It  is 
now  beginning  to  be  recognized  that  even  those 
harmonic  connections  in  his  works  which  once 

*  See  the  writer's  "  New  Lessons  in  Harmony."  To 
pursue  this  subject  in  detail  here  would  take  up  too  much 
space. 


Peculiarity  of 
his  Harmony. 


124 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


His  orchestra- 
tion. 


JfiJi  creative 
power,  and 
energy  and 
commanding 
influence. 


seemed  most  forced,  strange,  and  unnatural, 
are  really  simple  and  easily  comprehended. 
He  merely  discovered,  clearly  recognized  and 
applied  certain  natural  principles  of  harmonic 
relationships  which  had  been  overlooked  by  his 
predecessors.  This  is  one  of  the  strongest  evi- 
dences of  his  genius.  It  was  real  creative  in- 
sight. 

His  orchestration  is  as  original  as  his  har- 
mony. The  most  impressive  quality  of  it  is  a 
rich  sonority,  which  makes  even  the  colossal 
Beethoven  symphonies  sound  somewhat  small 
in  comparison.  Yet,  Wagner's  orchestration 
is  by  no  means  noisy.  It  is  surprising,  when 
one  thinks  of  it,  how  sparingly  he  uses  the 
brass  instruments,  and  how  few  additions  of 
special  instruments  he  has  made  to  the  Bee- 
thoven orchestra.  The  overwhelming  sonority 
of  his  scores  seems  to  be  due  mainly  to  the  dis- 
tribution of  harmonic  elements,  and  to  the  rich- 
ness and  variety  of  the  chords  themselves.  It 
shows  what  can  be  done  by  a  great  master 
with  resources  which,  in  the  hands  of  a  com- 
monplace composer,  would  produce  only  insig- 
nificant effects. 

Whatever  we  may  think  of  Wagner's  the- 
ories, or  of  certain  details  in  them;  whether  he 
was  or  was  not  more  or  less  one-sided ;  whether 
he  did  or  did  not  exaggerate  this  or  that  truth 
at  the  expense  of  others,  which  will  sooner  or 
later  claim  and  obtain  recognition,  the  facts 
will  always  remain  that  he  created  some  of  the 
most  important  and  effective  art-works  the 
world  has  yet  seen,  that  he  occupied  a  most 
commanding  position  during  a  large  part  of 
the  present  century,  and  that  he  possessed  an 
intellect  and  a  creative  power  never  surpassed 


GERMAN  OPERA. 


125 


and  seldom  equaled  in  the  world's  history 
until  now. 

He  won  worldly  success,  also.  Failing  a 
second  time  in  Paris,  after  he  left  Switzerland, 
he  turned  again  to  Germany,  made  his  way 
gradually,  and  in  1864  was  called  to  Munich 
by  Ludwig  II,  who  had  just  acceded  to  the 
throne  of  Bavaria.  From  that  time  until  his 
death  he  enjoyed  the  support  of  his  royal  pa- 
tron, he  outlived  the  worst  of  the  opposition  to 
his  works,  he  actually  got  a  special  theatre 
built  at  Bayreuth,  a  little  remote  town,  had  it 
fitted  according  to  his  own  ideas  for  the  pro- 
duction of  his  own  works,  and  thither  the  best 
and  most  intelligent  musicians  and  connoisseurs 
flocked  from  all  over  the  world  to  hear  his 
music-dramas.  In  that  theatre  the  orchestra 
and  conductor  are  out  of  sight,  the  auditorium 
is  in  gloom,  and  the  whole  attention  of  the 
hearer  is  concentrated  on  the  drama  enacted 
before  him  on  the  stage.  Recalls  are  unknown  ; 
each  singer  devotes  himself  exclusively  to  the 
interpretation  of  the  drama ;  in  short,  it  is  a 
temple  where  art  alone  is  worshipped  and 
where  self-seeking  vanity  is  sacrilege. 

The  man  who  achieved  such  results  may 
have  made  mistakes;  he  had  his  errors,  follies, 
weaknesses;  but  he  also  had  splendid,  noble 
qualities,  he  believed  in  his  ideals,  he  had  the 
courage  of  his  convictions,  faith  in  himself, 
indomitable  energy,  perseverance  and  courage. 
He  made  the  world  go  his  way  at  last,  and  his 
achievements  are  a  permanent  enrichment  of 
the  world's  intellectual  and  spiritual  life. 


His  worldly 
success. 


Bayreuth, 
1876. 


Summary. 


126 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


QUESTIONS. 

In  what  city  was  the  earliest  advance  made  towards  the 
production  of  real  German  opera? 

Name  one  of  the  most  important  composers  there  give 
dates,  at  least  approximately,  and  give  some  account  of 
lii«  character  and  work. 

Name  other  composers  of  that  city. 

What  is  a  "  Sing- spiel "  ? 

Give  an  account  of  Mozart's  work. 

Give  dates  of  his  birth  and  death. 

What  opera  did  Beethoven  write? 

Did  it  involve  any  new  principles  of  dramatic  compo- 
sition ? 

What  is  the  general  tone  and  spirit  of  it  ? 

Give  dates  of  Beethoven's  birth  and  death? 

Who  gave  the  first  effective  impulse  toward  the  produc- 
tion of  German  opera  ? 

Give  dates  of  his  birth  and  death. 

What  opera  produced  this  result  ? 

In  what  year  was  it  composed  and  where  ? 

Name  the  two  other  great  operas  of  this  composer? 

What  great  period  of  musical  art  begins  with  Weber? 

State,  as  clearly  as  you  can,  the  difference  between  the 
"classical"  and  "romantic"  ideals. 

What  periods  of  history  have  been  specially  favorable  to 
the  development  of"  romantic  "  art  and  literature  and  why  ? 

What  era  gave  rise  to  romantic  literature  and  music  in 
Germany? 

Name  two  of  Weber's  greatest  successors  and  their  most 
important  works. 

In  whose  work   has  German  opera  culminated  ? 

Give  dates  of  Wagner's  birth  and  death. 

Give  some  account  of  his  mental  activity  in  his  child- 
hood and  youth  and  of  his  education. 

In  what  cities  was  he  conductor  of  opera  during  his 
apprentice  period  ? 

What  was  his  first  important  opera  ? 

To  what  city  did  he  go  to  get  it  performed? 

By  what  route? 
Describe  his  fortunes  there. 
What  was  his  second  great  opera  ? 
Where  were  his  third  and  fourth  written  and  how  came 
he  there  ? 


GERMAN  OPERA. 


1-7 


What  were  they,  and  what  was  their  fate  ? 

How  came  he  to  leave  Dresden? 

Where  and  how  did  he  spend  the  next  period  of  his 
life? 

Where  did  he  live  from  1864  to  1883  ? 

Name  his  remaining  operas. 

Give  some  account  of  the  Bayreuth  Theatre. 

Give  an  account  of  Wagner's  theory  of  the  music-drama. 

Describe  the  peculiar! ties  of  structure  in  his  later  works 

What  are  the  most  striking  innovations  in  Wagner's 
harmony? 

Of  his  orchestration  ? 

Give  a  brief  summary  of  his  character,  work  and  place 
in  musical  history. 


The  two   lines 

atony  which. 

opera  ha.t 

ileveloped. 


Italian.    Pre- 

dominanre  of 

the  foi-mal 

element. 


French  and 
German.    Pre- 
dominance  of 

the  (trtimatic 
element. 


LESSON  XIV. 
THE  OPERA:  SUMMARY  AND  OUTLOOK. 

THE  music-drama,  started  in  Italy  almost 
three  centuries  ago,  has  developed  along  two 
great  lines.  In  Italy  its  course  was  in  the 
direction  of  musical  form.  The  musical  part 
of  the  opera  was  exalted  at  the  expense  of  the 
dramatic  element,  with  the  inevitable  result  of 
making  the  singers  eventually  the 'ruling  per- 
sonages of  the  opera.  Vocal  attainments  and 
vocal  display  naturally  and  inevitably  became 
the  prominent  feature;  singers  were  no  longer 
interpreters  of  a  dramatic  work,  and  Italian 
opera  was  degraded  from  the  ennobling  aims 
of  the  drama  to  a  mere  entertainment.  It  cul- 
minated, so  far  as  this  tendency  is  concerned, 
in  the  brilliant,  hollow,  showy  but  enticing 
operas  of  Rossini. 

Verdi's  tendencies  have  been  toward  higher 
aims,  and  there  are  not  wanting  signs  that 
Italian  opera  is  to  be  regenerated,  largely 
through  the  influence  of  Germany  and  espe- 
cially of  Wagner. 

The  other  line  was  that  looking  toward  dra- 
matic truthfulness  of  expression  as  the  true 
aim  of  opera,  and  making  the  musical  element 
subordinate  to  this  end.  To  the  French  be- 
longs the  credit  of  keeping  this  ideal  alive 
when  Italy  had  lost  it,  and  for  a  century  or 
more  before  there  was  any  independent  national 
qpera  elsewhere.  As  regards  this,  its  true 
ideal,  French  opera  culminates  in  the  works 
of  Gluck.  Meyerbeer,  the  greatest  Parisian 
favorite  since  Gluck,  among  composers  of  grand 
128 


THE  OPERA    SUMMARY  AND  OUTLOOK. 


129 


opera,  was  nearly  as  insincere  and  as  con- 
sciencless  as  Rossini  himself,  and  contributed 
in  no  small  degree  to  the  degradation  of  French 
taste.  Ballet,  scenic  display,  sensationalism, 
these  are  but  too  prevalent  now  in  French 
»  grand  opera,  and  as  for  comic  opera,  one  needs 
only  to  mention  Offenbach  to  be  conscious  of 
how  low  French  taste  for  "amusement"  has 
fallen.  But  Gounod  and  Saint-Saens,  at  least, 
are  redeeming  elements  of  a  high  class,  and 
there  are  indications  of  radical  improvement. 

The  honor  of  developing  opera  in  the  line  of 
the  true  music-drama  passed  over  to  Germany 
about  1820.  The  two  great  names  are  Weber 
and  Wagner,  in  which  last  it  has  reached  a 
height  the  immensity  of  which  we  cannot  yet 
fairly  estimate  and  beyond  which  we  cannot  yet 
see.  No  one  can  prophesy  the  future  of  German 
opera.  There  are  signs,  however,  that  serious 
aims  in  opera  are  not  to  be  given  up.  Anton 
Rubinstein's  "  Nero  "  is  a  work  whose  merits 
are  highly  extolled,  and  Hermann  Goetz's 
(1840-1876)  "Taming  of  the  Shrew"  was  an 
admirable  work,  and  gave  great  promise  of 
what  might  have  been  but  for  the  untimely  death 
of  its  author.  But  probably  little  remains  for 
young  composers,  at  present,  except  to  imitate 
Wagner.  Such  periods  as  his  are  commonly 
followed  by  periods  of  rest  and  a  lying  fallow 
of  the  creative  imagination  before  another  great 
period  of  production  can  come.  Minds  like 
Warner's  appear  only  at  rare  intervals. 

The  field  of  comic  opera  and  of  operetta  has 
been  well  worked  in  Germany,  and  especially  in 
Vienna,  which  pleasure-loving  city  fairly  vies 
with  Paris  in  its  craving  for  amusement.  Resi- 
dent composers  have  not  been  slow  to  provide 


Anton 

Rubinstein. 


Hermann 

Goetz. 


130 


THE  OPERA:  SUMMARY  AND  OUTLOOK. 


mcolai. 


Opera  in 
England. 


it,  and  the  operettas  of  Suppe,  Strauss,  Genee 
and  Milloecker  have  nearly  or  quite  crowded 
out  Offenbach's  in  Europe  and  in  America,  in 
North  Germany  there  has  been  less  of  this  sort 
of  work,  composers  there  rarely  descending  be- 
low comedy  to  farce.  Nicolai's  '•  Merry  Wives 
of  Windsor"  is  a  fair  example  of  the  type  of 
comic  opera  in  North  Germany,  as  Suppe's 
"Boccacio"  is  of  the  Viennese  operetta.  All 
this  activity  on  the  lighter  side  of  the  musical 
stage  has  gone  on  side  by  side  with  the  serious 
work  of  Wagner,  and  there  are  no  signs  of  its 
diminution. 

In  England  there  has  been  no  original  school 
of  opera.  English  composers  of  more  or  less 
talent  have  followed  on  the  lines  of  Italian, 
French  and  German  composers,  and  have  pro- 
duced works  of  some  merit,  though  it  would  be 
difficult  to  mention  any  such  works  that  arc 
likely  fo  prove  lasting.  The  two  most  impor- 
tant of  the  older  names  are  M.  W.  Balfe  (1808- 
1870),  who  wrote  a  considerable  number  ol 
operas,  the  best  of  which  was  "  The  Bohemian 
Girl,"  and  W.  V.  Wallace  (1814-1865),  whose 
best  opera  was  "  Maritana."  To  these  names 
should  be  added  two  foreigners,  long  resident 
in  London,  Sir  Michal  Costa  (1810-1 884),  and 
Sir  Julius  Benedict  (1804-1885). 

Sir  Arthur  S.  Sullivan  (born  1842)  is  now 
extremely  conspicuous  in  the  field  of  the  oper- 
etta. He  owes  a  great  deal  to  his  librettist. 
W.  S.  Gilbert,  who  is  an  adept  in  the  manufac- 
ture of  droll  absurdities  in  rhyme.  His  libret- 
tos are  wholly  free  from  the  risk}-  situations 
and  improper  suggestions  which  characlerize 
so  many  of  the  Parisian  and  Viennese  operettas, 
a  fact  to  which  they  doubtless  owe  110  small 


Balfe. 
Wallace. 
Costa. 
Benedict. 


Gilbert  and 
Sullivan. 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


131 


portion  of  their  popularity  among .  the  best 
classes  in  England  and  America.  Sullivan  is 
not  a  composer  of  any  marked  originality.  His 
scores  are  full  of  reminiscences  and  borrowed 
ideas.  But  both  he  and  Gilbert  are  clever 
writers  and  skillful  purveyors  of  amusing  trifles, 
and  have  won  an  enormous  popularity.  Their 
H.  M.  S.  Pinafore  was  their  first  successful 
operetta.  It  had  a  great  run  in  England  and 
an  enormous  one  in  this  country.  It  was  fol- 
lowed by  Patience,  lolanthe  and  TJ\e  Mikado, 
all  of  which  have  been  successful. 

Frederick  H.  Cowen  (born  1852)  is  an  opera  i 
composer   of   promise,   who    has    done    excel- 
lent work  in   the  field   of  instrumental  music. 
A.  (7.  Mackenzie  (born  1847)  has  done  nothing;    Mackenzie, 
yet  in  the  field  of  opera,  but  his  other  work  | 
suggests  that  he  might  be  successful  here  also.  ( 
England  has  at  present  a  number  of  thoughtful,  j 
earnest,  native  composers  ;  but  there  is  nothing  j 
to  indicate  that  they  are  about  to  originate  a 
national  school  of  opera,  unless,  indeed,  we  look 
on  the    Gilbert   and    Sullivan    operettas   as   a 
national  type.     The  librettos,  at   least,  could 
have  been  produced  nowhere  but  in  England. 

In  America,  thus  far,  there  have  been  but  few 
attempts  at  operatic  composition,  and  none  of 
them  have  yet  won  a  pronounced  success. 


132 


THE  OPERA:  SUMMARY  AND  OUTLOOK. 


QUESTIONS. 

What  were  the  two  great  lines  along  which  opera 
developed  ? 

What  was  the  result  of  the  Italian  method  ? 

In  whom  did  this  tendency  culminate  ? 

What  great  Italian  composer  has  shown  himself  some- 
what superior  to  this  tendency  ? 

Have  the  French  maintained  their  original  standard 
of  opera? 

Name  two  prominent  composers  whose  influence  tended 
to  degrade  it. 

Who  adopted  the  French  ideal  and  improved  on  what 
that  nation  had  done? 

Name  two  great  contemporaries  of  Wagner. 

Name  some  of  the  Viennese  composers  of  operetta. 

Name  the  prominent  English  composers  of  opera  and 
operetta. 


LESSON  XV. 

ORATORIO,   CANTATA,   PASSION    MUSIC    AND    SACRED 
MUSIC   FROM    1700    TO   THE   PRESENT. 

MOST  of  the  opera  composers  of  the  seven- 
teenth and  eighteenth  centuries  wrote  more  or 
less  church  music,  and  many  of  them  wrote 
also  oratorios  and  secular  cantatas.  There  was  a 
gradual  broadening  of  the  forms  and  a  growing 
freedom  of  treatment  until  the  oratorio  culmi- 
nated, as  regards  perfection  of  form  and  dignity 
and  nobility  of  content  in  the  works  of  George 
Frederick  Haendel  (1685-1759).  He  was  a 
Saxon  by  birth,  showed  musical  gifts  in  early 
childhood,  mastered  all  or  nearly  all  the  musical 
knowledge  of  his  time  while  he  was  still  a  youth, 
spent  some  time  in  the  Hamburg  opera,  went  to 
Italy  for  what  he  could  learn  there,  then  became 
conductor  and  composer  in  Hanover,  but  soon 
went  to  London,  where  he  spent  the  rest  of  his 
life.  He  wrote  a  good  deal  of  music  for  the 
organ,  harpsicnord  and  violin,  but  devoted  him- 
self mainly  to  the  Italian  opera,  on  the  model 
of  Alessandro  Scarlatti.  He  was  composer, 
conductor  and  theatre  manager,  all  in  one,  and 
wrote  forty-six  operas,  which  survive  now  only 
in  detached  arias.  His  career  as  an  opera  com- 
poser closed  in  1740.  He  had  failed  two  or  three 
times,  owing  to  quarrels  with  the  nobility,  the 
only  patrons  of  the  opera  at  that  time,  and 
thenceforth  devoted  himself  to  oratorio  exclu- 
sively. He  had  already  done  some  work  in  this 
field.  Esther,  Deborah,  Athalia,  and  the  cantata 
Acis  and  Galatea  antedate  his  withdrawal  from 
the  opera,  and  so  do  his  Anthems  and  the  Det- 

133 


Haendel, 
1685-1795. 


134 


ORATORIO,  CANTATA,  PASSION,  SACRED  MUSIC- 


His  great, 
oratories. 


Distinction 

between 
"  or'atories" 
"  sacred 

cantatas" 
and"  secular 
cantatas." 


Israel  in 
Euypt. 


The  Messiah. 


tingen  Te  Deum.  His  greatest  oratorios,  written 
in  the  full  maturity  of  his  powers  are  The 
Messiah  and  Israel  in  Egypt.  Others  which 
approximate  these  are  Judas  Maccabaeus,  Saul, 
Samson,  Joseph,  Joshua,  Susanna,  Solomon, 
Theodora  and  Jephtha.  The  Messiah  and  Israel 
in  Egypt  are  the  only  ones  which  employ  scrip- 
tural words  exclusively.  The  others  have  texts 
based  on  scriptural  stories,  written  by  con- 
temporary authors  of  reputation,  and  might 
appropriately  be  called  "  sacred  cantatas."  "  Ora- 
torios," "  sacred  cantatas  "  and  "  secular  canta- 
tas" have  precisely  the  same  form,  differing 
only  in  character  of  the  words.  All  three  are 
written  for  solos,  chorus  and  orchestra.  The 
solo  parts  consist  of  recitatives  and  arias, 
then  there  are  commonly  duets,  trios,  quartets, 
etc.,  for  solo  voices.  But  the  most  characteristic 
feature  is  the  chorus,  a  large  part  of  the  genius 
and  skill  of  the  composer  being  spent  on  the 
choral  writing.  Israel  in  Egypt  is  a  chain  of 
colossal  choruses,  many  of  them  double  chor- 
uses, for  two  choirs.  The  solo  work  is  compara- 
tively slight.  It  is  given  much  less  frequently 
than  The  Messiah,  which  has  become  the  com- 
mon property  of  all  English  speaking  men  and 
is  now  given  every  Christmastide  in  many  places 
in  England  and  America.  It  owes  its  enormous 
popularity  largely  to  Haendel's  happy  selection 
of  his  text  from  the  Holy  Scripture.  He  had  a 
special  aptitude  for  appreciating  and  expressing 
the  sublime,  and  The  Messiah,  perhaps  even 
more  than  Israel  in  Egypt,  shows  him  at  his 
best.  It  was  written  in  an  incredibly  short  time 
and  with  the  greatest  facility,  and  everywhere 
displays  the  band  of  a  great  master.  The  steady 
march  of  his  magnificent  chorusus  has  never 


LESSORS  /A'  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


135 


ceased  to  uplift  and  to  inspire  the  souls  of 
thousands,  and  the  noble  climaxes  of  the  Halle- 
lujah chorus  and  Worthy  is  the  Lamb  have  never 
been  surpassed  in  choral  writing.  There  are 
tender  passages,  too,  such  as  the  part  beginning 
"Behold  the  Lamb  of  God."  The  contralto 
aria  "  He  was  despised  "  and  the  short  tenor 
aria  "  Behold  and  see "  are  unsurpassed  in 
pathos, and  the  noble  soprano  air"  I  know  that 
my  Redeemer  liveth  "  is  perhaps  as  immortal  as 
the  sublime  hope  and  faith  of  which  it  is  the 
worthy  expression.  There  is  a  good  deal,  how- 
ever, in  The  Messiah  which  betrays  the  Italian 
opera  composer.  In  the  soprano  air  "  Rejoice 
greatly, "and  in  numerous  other  portions  of  the 
work  there  are  ronlades  and  fioriture  which  are 
much  more  suggestive  of  solo  display  than  of 
devout  worship.  Notwithstanding  the  fact  that 
even  these  portions  of  the  work  correspond  in 
their  general  emotional  tone  to  the  sentiment 
of  the  text,  they  are  largely  made  up  of  ele- 
ments which  are  temporary  and  according  to 
the  fashions  of  the  time  rather  than  permanent 
and  universal.  It  is  probable  that  this  will 
become  more  and  more  clear  to  the  general 
musical  perception  as  men  become  gradually 
familiar  with  the  noble,  serious  music  of  Wag- 
ner's Lohengrin  and  Parsifal,  and  that  The 
Messiah,  as  a  whole,  will  suffer  by  comparison. 
There  are  not  wanting  signs  that  the  time  will 
come  when  the  musical  world  may  possibly 
receive  more  religious  inspiration  from  Wagner 
than  from  Haendel,  though  this  opinion  must 
now  seem  extremely  heretical. 

The  Passion  Music  differs  from  oratorio,  first, 
in  confining  itself  in  its  selection  of  Scriptural 
texts  to  those  portions  of  the  Gospels  narrating 


Influence  of 
Italian  opera 

in  the 
Messiah. 


Comparison  of 

Wauntr  with 

Haendel. 


Passion. 
Music. 


136 


ORATORIO,  CANTATA,  PASSION,  SACRED  MUSIC. 


J. .?.  Sach, 

liW5-17r.lt. 


St.  Matthew, 
Passion 
Music. 


the  suffering  and  death  of  Christ;  and  second, 
in  combining  with  the  Scriptural  narrative  solos 
expressive  of  the  emotions  of  the  individual 
believer  and  choruses  to  express  the  feelings  of 
the  multitude.  Both  these  latter  have  words 
not  taken  from  the  Scriptures.  Most,  if  not 
all,  the  examples  known  were  written  for  actual 
use  in  church  service  on  Good  Friday. 

The  great  master  in  this  form  was  Johann 
Sebastian  Bach  (1685-1750).  Like  Haendel, 
he  was  a  Saxon  by  birth,  began  his  musical  edu- 
cation in  early  childhood,  mastered  the  harpsi- 
chord, violin  and  organ,  became  the  greatest 
organist  and  fugue-writer  of  his  time,  perhaps  of 
all  time,  and  finished  his  life  as  organist  and 
choir-master  in  the  Church  of  St.  Thomas  in 
Leipzig.  This  position  he  occupied  for  twenty- 
seven  years,  writing  hundreds  of  motets,  canta- 
tas, chorals,  etc.,  for  the  use  of  his  choir.  He 
is  said  to  have  written  five  separate  examples 
of"  Passion  Music,"  the  greatest  of  them  being 
the  "  Passion  Music  according  to  St.  Matthew." 
a  colossal  work  in  every  respect  and  a  perma- 
nent embodiment  of  this  phase  of  Christian 
faith  and  worship.  It  was  first  given  at  the 
Good  Friday  service  of  1729.  and  then  was  laid 
aside  for  a  whole  century.  It  was  revived  by 
Mendelssohn  and  his  friend  Edward  Devrient 
in  1829,  and  is  now  given  publicly  ever}'  year 
in  Leipzig  and  elsewhere. 

Not  only  did  the  Passion  Music  culminate 
with  Bach's  great  work,  but  it  seems  to  have 
ended  with  it.  Since  that  time,  so  far  as  the 
present  writer's  recollection  goes,  there  has 
been  no  art-work  of  importance  of  this  kind. 
The  oratorio,  however,  has  been  successfully 
cultivated.  The  most  conspicuous  examples  of 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


137 


it  since  Haendel  have  been    The   Creation,  by 
Joseph    Haydn   (1732-1809),    which    perhaps 
ought  to  be  called  a  sacred  cantata,  and  the  two 
oratorios  St.  Paul  and  Elijah,  by  Felix  Men- 
delssohn  Bartholdy    (1809-1847).     The   latter, 
especially,  is  of  a  highly  dramatic  character. 
Unlike  The  Messiah,  it  illustrates  the  progress 
-of  a  story,  and  is  a  real  music-drama,  without 
;action  or  scenic   accessories.     Both  musically 
•and  dramatically,  it  is  of  a  very  high  order  of 
merit,  and  its  climaxes  are  exceedingly  effective. 
So  is  that  of  the  first   part  of  St.  Paul.     These 
two  oratorios  would   be  sufficient  to  give  Men- 
delssohn a  permanent  place  in  musical  history, 
if  he  had  written  nothing  else. 

Since  Mendelssohn  a  good  many  oratorios  of 
merit  have  been  written.  Conspicuous  among 
them  are  Naaman,  by  Sir  Michael  Costa  ; 
Christus,  by  Fredrick  Kiel  (1821-1885),  late 
professor  of  composition  in  the  High  School  of 
music  in  Berlin ;  Calvary,  by  Ludwig  Spohr 
(1784-1859),  and  in  America,  St.  Peter,  by 
John  K.  Paine  (born  1839),  professor  of  music 
in  Harvard  University. 

Related  to  this  are  sacred  art-forms  intended 
for  concert  performance  rather  than  for  church 
service.  Such  are  the  great  mass  in  B  minor. 
by  J.  S.  Bach,  some  of  the  masses  of  Mozart, 
particularly  his  Requiem,  those  of  Beethoven, 
especially  the  great  Missa  Solennis  in  D  major, 
.Rossini's  Stabat  Mater,  a  brilliant  and  effective, 
but  insincere  and  non-religious  work,  Cheru- 
bini's  "  Requiem,  Berlioz's  Requiem,  Yerdi's 
"  Manzoni  "  Requiem,  etc. 

The  masses  for  the  Catholic  church  service 
have  been  numerous,  but  none  of  them  have 
ever  approximated  the  dignity,  nobility  and 


LISBON  XV. 
Haydn. 


Mendelssohn. 


Costa. 
Kiel. 
Spohr. 
Paine. 


Concert, 
Masses,  etc. 


Church  Mule. 


138 


ORATORIO,  CANTATA,  PASSION',  SACRED  MUSIC. 


LMKW  XV. 


Moritz 
Hauptmann. 


English  and 

American 
Church  Music. 


serene  religious  feeling  of  Palestrina.  Many 
modern  masses,  especially  by  Italian  and 
French  composers,  are  showy,  false  and  mere- 
tricious to  the  last  degree.  The  Lutheran 
Church  music  is  based  on  the  choral.  Its  art- 
forms  consist  mainly  in  motets  and  short  sacred 
;antatas.  Bach  wrote  them  in  great  numbers, 
and  most  German  composers  since  his  time 
tiave  written  more  or  less  of  them,  especially 
motets.  Moritz  Hauptmann  (1792-1868)  one 
of  Bach's  successors  in  his  Leipzig  post,  was 
one  of  the  best  of  motet  composers,  distinguish- 
ing himself  in  this  field  of  composition,  more 
than  in  any  other,  and  surpassing  most  if  not 
all  others  in  it.  In  the  Anglican  Church,  the 
Anthem  is  the  most  important  form,  and  well- 
trained  English  composers,  from  the  madrigal 
composers  down,  have  written  anthems  for  the 
church  service.  The  other  Protestant  sects 
have  mostly  eschewed  the  chants  of  the  Angli- 
can Church,  but  have  largely  adopted  her  hymn- 
tunes  and  in  part  her  anthems.  They  have 
also  borrowed  motets,  etc.,  from  German  sources. 
Besides  this,  many  congregations  use  frequent 
arrangements  from  operas,  secular  songs,  etc.r 
set  to  sacred  words,  not  always  in  the  best 
taste.  The  hymn-tunes  and  especially  the 
Sunday  School  tunes  of  this  country  are  often 
mere  jingle,  wholly  unrelated  to  true  religious 
feeling  and  corrupting  to  the  taste  of  those 
who  habitually  use  them.  But  there  are  also 
excellent  tunes  in  use,  and  on  the  whole,  the 
tendency  is  probably  toward  better  and  higher 
things.  Among  our  best  native  church  music 
is  the  work  of  Dudley  Buck,  whose  two  motette 
collections  have  exercised  an  elevating  influence 
on  American  church  music. 


LES80N&  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


The  secular  cantata  has  been  cultivated  from 
the  time  of  the  birth  of  the   oratorio.     Bach       secular 

TT  11  -rr        i  vantutas, 

and  Haendel  wrote  cantatas,  Haydn  wrote 
The  Seasons,  Mendelssohn  wrote  Antigone  and 
others,  Schumann  wrote  Paradise  and  the  Peri, 
based  on  Moore's  "  Lalla  Rookh,"  and  the  ex- 
amples since  are  too  numerous  to  mention. 
Berlioz's  splendid  Damnation  of  Faust  belongs 
to  this  species.  Conspicuous  among  later 
German  works  are  Max  Bruch's  (born  1838) 
Lay  of  the  Bell  and  Frithjof,  Heinrich 
Hoffman's  (born  1842)  Cinderella,  Johannes 
Brahms'1  (born  1833)  Binaldo,  Song  of  Fate, 
and  others,  and  Anton  Dvorak's  (born  1841) 
The  Spectre's  Bride.  In  England  A.  C.  Macken- 
zie's (born  1847)  Rose  of  Sharon  is  perhaps  the 
best  work  of  this  kind.  Sir  Arthur  S.  Sullivan 
(born  1842)  has  written  The  Prodigal  /Son  and  a 
setting  of  Longfellow's  Golden  Legend,  but  the 
latter  is  inferior  in  every  respect  to  that  of  our 
own  Dudley  Buck  (born  1839),  who  has  also 
written  The  Legend  of  Don  Munio,a,nd  a  "  Cen- 
tennial" cantata.  J.  K.  Paine's  OeUipusis  an 
excellent  work.  Most  of  these  works  are 
essentially  operas  without  action. 


140 


ORATORIO,  CANTATA,  PASSION,  SACRED  MUSIC. 


QUESTIONS. 

In  whose  works  did  the  oratorio  culminate  ? 

Name  his  two  greatest  oratorios. 

How  came  Haendel  to  devote  himself  to  writing  ora- 
torios ? 

Describe  the  distinctions  between  "oratorios"  and 
sacred  and  secular  "  cantatas." 

Tell  what  you  know  of  the  peculiarities  of  The  Messiah 
and  Israel  in  Egypt. 

How  does  the  "  Passion  Music  "  differ  from  "  oratorio  "? 

Who  wrote  the  greatest  work  in  this  kind  ? 

What  do  you  know  of  him  and  of  his  work  ? 

Who  wrote  The  Creation  ? 

What  do  you  know  of  Mendelssohn's  oratorios? 

Name  them. 

Name  some  other  oratorios  and  their  composers. 

Name  some  great  masses  intended  for  concert  perform- 
ance. 

Name  one  of  the  greatest  motet  composers. 

Describe  the  condition  of  English  and  American  sacred 
music. 

Name  an  important  American  composer  in  this  field. 

Name  several  prominent  composers  of  cantatas  and  their 
principal  works. 


LESSON  XYI. 

THE  DEVELOPMENT   OF   THE   SONG. 

SONGS  were  among  the  earliest,  probably  the 
very  earliest,  manifestations  of  what  could  be 
called  music.  The  impulse  to  express  feeling 
vocally  is  universal.  All  the  world  over  women 
have  sung  lullabys  to  their  babes,  and  men  have 
given  vocal  expression  to  emotional  excitement. 
The  feeling  for  rhythm,  too,  is  universal.  The 
monotonous  chants  of  savages  naturally  and 
spontaneously  fall  into  measured  cadences,  and 
their  war  songs  are  accompanied  by  the  rhyth- 
mical beating  of  drums,  gongs,  etc.  Out  of 
this  natural  feeling  for  melody  and  rhythm 
grew  both  lyric  poetry  and  the  music  to  which 
it  was  sung.  The  early  song  is,  in  fact,  com- 
monly a  four  line  ballad  stanza,  fitting  exactly 
to  an  eight-measure  musical  period  having  two 
four-measure  clauses  (or  sections),  each  sub- 
divided into  two  phrases  of  two  measures  each. 
The  plan  of  such  a  period  then  is  as  foll6ws  : 
4  meas.  clause.  4  meas.  clause. 


1st  Phrase.    2d  Phrase.  3d  Phrase.    4th  Phrase. 

The  first  phrase  rhymes  with  the  third  and 
the  fourth  with  the  second,  i.  e.,  the  third  is  a 
nearly  or  quite  exact  repetition  of  the  first,  and 
the  fourth  repeats  the  second,  but  commonly 
with  a  different  close.  Quite  often,  however, 
the  fourth  differs  from  the  second  more  than 
merely  in  the  close.  The  two  clauses  stand 
in  the  relation  of  antecedent  and  consequent 
(Thesis  and  Antithesis).  This  simple  period- 

141 


Genesis  of 
Song. 


Metrical 

Form. 


The  simple 
period. 


142 


THE  DEVELOPMENT  OF  THE  SONG. 


Two  periods 

with 

connecting 
link,  (refrain.) 


Development 
of  lorm. 


The  elaborate 

song  of  the 

Romantic 

epoch. 


Schubert, 

1797-1828. 


form,  applied  to.  the  first  stanza  of  a  ballad, 
used  to  be  applied  equally  to  all  the  rest,  the 
same  tune  being  used  for  all  the  stanzas. 
Sometimes  there  is  a  short  refrain  of  two  lines 
after  the  stanza,  and  then  the  stanza  is  repeated. 
An  excellent  example  of  this  is  the  ancient 
French  tune  "  Malbrook,"  known  in  this  coun- 
try as  "  We  Won't  Go  Home  Till  Morning." 
Here  the  two-phrase  refrain  is  in  the  nature  of 
a  connecting  link  between  two  repetitions  of 
the  main  period,  and  the  whole  is  the  germ  of 
what  some  writers  call  the  "  First  Rondo- 
Form."  These  simple  formations  were  more  or 
less  extended  as  Form  was  developed  in  the 
hands  of  the  great  masters.  The  arias  of  the 
great  operas  and  oratorios  were  elaborate 
forms,  either  in  the  smaller  rondo-form  or  in 
the  composite  primary  forms,  and  the  more 
elaborate  songs  of  Mozart,  and  especially  of 
Beethoven,  were  built  on  a  similiar  plan.  But 
it  ought  to  be  noted  that  the  more  elaborate  of 
these  songs  and  arias  were  often,  if  not  gener- 
ally, set  to  words  not  cast  in  the  ballad  mould. 
Even  the  great  masters,  when  they  treated  the 
ballad  stanza,  were  apt  to  make  a  single  air  do 
duty  for  a  good  many  stanzas. 

With  the  rise  of  the  romantic  epoch  came 
the  feeling  that  every  portion  of  the  song  ought 
to  have  its  special,  appropriate  form  of  emo- 
tional expression  in  music.  The  man  who  once 
for  all  established  this  principle  in  song-writing, 
and  made  the  emotional  character  of  the  sepa- 
rate stanzas  the  governing  principle  in  the 
music,  was  Franz  Peter  Schubert  (1797-1828). 
In  spite  of  what  had  been  done  before  him,  his 
work  was  so  important,  both  in  quantity  and  in 
quality,  that  he  is  regarded  as  the  creator  of 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


143 


the  German  art-song,  as  opposed  to  the  folk- 
song, or  popular  ballad.  In  Schubert's  songs, 
the  instrumental  portion  takes  a  much  more 
prominent  place  than  in  the  folk-song  and  in 
the  songs  of  the  masters  who  had  preceded  him. 
It  is  no  longer  a  mere  accompaniment ;  it  is  an 
essential  portion  of  the  emotional  interpreta- 
tion of  the  poem,  has  independent  melodic 
value,  and  frequently  takes  the  principal  mel- 
ody, the  vocal  part  being  subordinate.  In  this 
respect,  Schubert's  innnovations  in  the  song 
are  closely  analogous  to  those  of  Wagner  in 
the  opera,  where  the  orchestral  portion  is  as 
important  as  the  vocal,  or  even  more  so.  Schu- 
bert wrote  some  six  hundred  songs,  and  set  to 
music  a  large  part  of  the  German  lyric  poetry 
known  in  his  day,  and  no  small  portion  of  the 
English.  He  was  a  creative  genius  of  the  first 
rank  as  regards  spontaneity  in  the  invention 
of  beautiful  and  characteristic  melodies,  and 
his  work  constitutes  an  art-treasure  of  perma 
nent  value. 

Following  him  came  the  great  romanticists, 
Mendelssohn  (1809-1847),  Schumann  (1810- 
1856),  and  later,  Robert  Franz  (born  1815),  a 
most  original  and  charming  composer. 

Among  the  greatest  of  living  song-writers 
are  Anton  Rubinstein  (born  1830),  and  Johannes 
Brahms  (born  1833).  There  is  a  host  of  song 
composers  of  merit,  both  contemporary  with 
these  men  and  younger  than  they.  They  are 
far  too  numerous  to  mention,  and  mention  is 
the  less  needed,  as  none  of  them  have  made  any 
innovations  on  the  principles  of  the  romantic 
writers.  They  have  simply  enriched  musical 
literature  with  numerous  songs,  more  or  less 
excellent. 


Mendelssohn. 

Schumann. 

Robert  Franz. 


Rubinstein. 
Brahms. 


144 


THE  DEVELOPMENT  OF  THE  SONG. 


QUESTIONS. 

In  what  impulse  of  human  nature  did  vocal  music  take 
its  rise  ? 

What  determined  the  form  of  the  simple  period  ? 

Give  plan. 

Do  lyric  popular  ballads  commonly  have  more  than  one 
tune  for  the  different  stanzas  ? 

Give  an  example  of  ballad  stanzas  with  a  refrain. 

Of  what  art-form  is  this  the  germ  ? 

What  is  the  essential  difference  between  the  lyric  ballad 
and  the  art-song,  as  developed  in  the  romantic  period  ? 

What  was  the  feeling  which  led  to  the  development  of 
the  art-song  ? 

Who  was  the  great  composer  of  such  songs  ? 

Give  dates. 

What  is  the  relation  of  the  instrumental  to  the  vocal 
portion  of  Schubert's  songs  ? 

Give  some  account  of  his  work,  both  in  quantity  and 
quality.  • 

Give  names  of  later  song  composers  of  the  first  rank. 


LESSON  XVII. 

INSTRUMENTAL   MUSIC  FROM  1700  TO  THE  PRESENT. 

THE  germs  of  the  symphony,  as  we  have 
seen,  were  in  the  opera  overtures  of  Lully  and 
of  Alessandro  Scarlatti.  The  three,  parts  of 
which  they  were  composed  became  separated 
after  the  overture  began  to  be  used  as  a  sepa- 
rate instrumental  piece  in  concert  performances, 
and  thus  it  became  the  modern  symphony.  The 
sonata,  originally  a  piece  in  one  movement, 
also  took  on  the  same  form  as  the  symphony.* 

J.  S.  Bach  and  Haendel  cast  a  great  deal  of 
their  harpsichord  music  in  the  form  of  suites, 
generally  consisting  of  six  or  eight  dance  tunes, 
contrasted  with  one  another  in  tempo,  but  all 
in  the  same  key.  Johann  Kuhnau  (1667-1722), 
Bach's  predecessor  at  Leipzig,  was  the  first  man 
who  used  the  tit^e  u  sonata "  for  his  harpsi- 
chord music.  Domenico  Scarlatti  (1683-1757), 
son  of  Alessandro,  was  a  great  harpsichord  vir- 
tuoso. He  wrote  numerous  "  sonatas  "  in  one 
movement  for  his  instrument,  which  differed 
little,  if  any,  from  the  single  movements  of 
Bach's  suites.  All  the  composers  of  the  time 
wrote  fugues,  Bach's  "  Well  Tempered  Clavi- 
chord "  and  his  organ  fugues  being  the  culmi- 
nating point  of  this  style. 

The  first  to  write  sonatas  for  the  harpsi- 
chord in  three  movements  was  Carl  Phillip  Em- 
manuel Bach  (1711-1788),  son  of  J.  S.,  for  a 
long  time  court-pianist  to  Frederick  the  Great 
of  Prussia,  and  afterwards  settled  in  Hamburg. 


*  For  a  fuller  exposition  of  the  sonata,  see  the  writer's 
"  History  of  Piano-Forte  Music." 

145 


LMSON  XV1T. 


Origin  of  the 
symphony. 


The  Suite. 


The  Sonata 
Jfuhnau. 


D.  Scarlatti^ 


C.  f.  E.  Bach, 
1711-1788. 


146 


Jfaydn 


Mozart, 
17o6-1791. 


INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC,  PAST  AND  PRESENT. 

: 

His  style  differs  greatly  from  that  of  his  father, 
and  he  is  the  real  creator  of  the  modern  sonata, 
for  Haydn,  Mozart,  and  even  Beethoven  mod- 
eled on  him.  The  French  contemporaries  of 
Bach  and  Haendel,  Rameau,  Couperin,  Mar- 
chand,  etc.,  have  been  referred  to  in  a  previous 
lesson. 

After  Emmanuel  Bach  had  outlined  the  so- 
nata, it  was  taken  up  by  Joseph  Haydn  (1732- 
1809)  in  Vienna.  He  wrote  a  great  number  of 
piano-forte  sonatas,  trios,  string  quartets  and 
symphonies  (one  hundred  and  eighteen  of  the 
latter),  all  in  the  same  form,  and  showed  so 
much  inventive  genius,  originality  and  skill 
that  he  is  by  far  the  most  prominent  figure  of 
his  time  in  instrumental  music.  His  work 
marks  an  epoch  in  this  field. 

W.  A.  Mozart  (1756-1791)  lived  during 
Haydn's  career,'  had  the  benefit  of  his  work, 
possessed  a  splendid  originality,  and  surpassed 
Haydn  in  the  development  of  his  forms,  and  in 
the  richness,  fulness  and  variety  of  his  instru- 
mental combinations.  The  most  of  Haj'dn's 
symphonies  were  written  for  a  small  orchestra, 
made  up  of  the  usual  string  quintet  (first  and 
second  violins,  viola,  violoncello  and  double 
bass),  two  oboes  and  two  horns.  Mozart  added 
to  these  two  flutes,  two  clarionets,  two  fagotti 
(bassoons), two  trumpets  and  two  kettle-drums. 
Haydn's  later  symphonies,  after  Mozart's  work 
was  published,  approximated  his  in  fulness. 
Both  had  the  four  great  families  of  instruments  : 
viz.,  1,  stringed  instruments  played  with  a  bow; 
2,  wood-wind;  3,  brass;  and  4,  instruments  of 
percussion.  In  his  three  greatest  sj-mphonies, 
the  "Jupiter"  in  C,  the  G  minor,  and  the  E-flat 
major,Mozart  not  only  developed  the  symphony 


LESSONS  TN  MUSTCAL  HISTORY. 


147 


form  to  its  utmost  limits,  but  enriched  the  world 
with  beautiful  instrumental  combinations  greatly 
in  advance  of  Haydn,  and  hardly  surpassed  by 
even  Beethoven-  himself.  Mozart  wrote  a  vast 
quantity  of  piano  music,  chamber  music,  songs, 
and  orchestral  music,  besides  his  operas,  church 
music,  and  forty-one  symphonies. 

Ludwig  von  Beethoven  (1770-1827)  was  the 
next  great  symphony  writer,  although  he  was 
much  less  prolific  than  Mozart  or  Haydn.  He 
wrote  only  nine  symphonies,  the  last  closing 
with  a  movement  for  solos,  chorus,  and  orches- 
tra. He  accepted  the  form  of  the  S3rmphony 
as  completed  by  Mozart.  He  added  to  Mozart's 
orchestra  two  more  horns  and  three  trombones, 
a  combination  now  known  as"  grand  orchestra," 
and  accepted  by  all  symphony  composers  since. 
The  piccolo  and  contra-bassoon  he  used  but 
rarely.  His  acknowledged  superiority  to  all 
other  symphony  writers  before  and  since  lies 
in  the  nobility,  elevation  and  depth  of  the  emo- 
tional content  of  his  works.  They  reveal  a 
moral  earnestness  and  a  high  spiritual  quality 
not  to  be  found  before  him,  nor  after  him  until 
we  come  to  Wagner.  His  chamber  music,  his 
church  music,  his  one  opera  and  his  piano-forte 
sonatas  display  the  same  nobility  of  character, 
the  same  serious  thoughtfulness  and  the  same 
consummate  mastery  of  style. 

Franz  Schubert  (1797-1827),  the  great  song- 
writer, also  wrote  nine  symphonies  and  a  great 
quantity  of  piano-forte  and  chamber  music, 
very  little  of  which  was  performed  during  his 
lifetime.  His  greatest  work  is  the  ninth  sym- 
phony, in  C  major.  All  these  works  are  charac- 
terized by  spontaneity,  freshness  of  melodic 
invention,  exquisite  beauty  of  harmony,  refine- 


, 

1770-1827. 


Schubert. 
1797-182*. 


148 


INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC,  PAST  AND  PRESENT. 


Weber. 


Hummel. 


Otter 

instrumental 
composers. 


ment,  and,  in  the  chamber  and  orchestral  works, 
by  extreme  beauty  in  the  instrumental  combina- 
tions and  contrasts.  Most  of  them  are  prolix 
and  lack  mental  concentration",  and  in  general 
there  is  more  vividness  and  exuberance  of  im- 
agination than  intellectual  restraint  and  self- 
control.  He  shows  the  dawning  influence  of 
the  romantic  period  even  more  than  Beetho- 
ven, who,  more  than  any  other  composer,  com- 
bines in  himself  the  superior  excellences  of 
both  the  classical  and  the  romantic  ideals. 

The  opera  overtures  of  C.  M.  von  Weber,  the 
great  contemporary  of  Beethoven  and  Schu- 
bert, are  instrumental  compositions  of  high  ex- 
cellence in  every  respect.  They  are  romantic 
in  spirit ;  but  as  regards  form,  do  not  depart 
from  classical  models.  His  piano-forte  music 
is  of  less  importance. 

Next  to  these  three,  their  most  renowned 
contemporary  in  the  field  of  instrumental  music 
was  J.  N.  Hummel  (1778-1837).  In  his  time 
he  had  a  great  reputation  as  a  pianist  and  a 
composer  of  piano-forte  and  chamber  music, 
and  some  of  his  concertos  and  chamber  compo- 
sitions are  still  played.  Other  composers  of 
distinction  in  this  field  were  Muzio  dementi 
(1752-1832),  Pleyel,  Dussek,  Steibelt,  Woelfl, 
Cramer,  Field,  Hies,  Kalkbrenner,  Onslow, 
Moscheles,  Czerny* 

These  names  bring  us  up  to  and  even  beyond 
the  opening  of  the  romantic  epoch,  for  Mos- 
cheles  and  Czerny  outlived  most  of  the  great 
romantic  composers.  The  four  years,  1809- 
1813,  ushered  into  the  world  five  great  com- 
posers, whose  work,  taken  together,  constitutes 


*  See  the  writer's  "  History  of  Piano-Forte  Music,"  for  a 
more  definite  account  of  these  men  and  their  work. 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


14'J 


the  romantic  epoch.  These  were  'Felix  Men- 
delssohn Bartholdy  (1809-1847),  Frederic 
Chopin  (1810-1849),  Eobert  Schumann  (1810- 
1856),  Franz  Liszt  (1811-1886)  and  Richard 
Wagner  (1813-1883).  To  these  names  must 
be  added  that  of  Hector  Berlioz  (1803-1869), 
who  wrote  in  the  spirit  of  extreme  romanticism, 
but  his  work  was  almost  isolated,  met  with 
very  little  success  during  his  lifetime,  and  exer- 
cised comparatively  little  influence  in  shaping 
the  course  of  musical  history.  His  symphonies, 
"  Episode  in  the  Life  of  an  Artist,"  "  Hai'old  in 
Italy,"  and  others,  are  extremely  fantastic. 
Of  the  others,  Wagner's  instrumental  writing, 
although  of  great  importance,  was  almost  ex- 
clusively in  his  music-dramas,  and  has  already 
been  treated  of  under  the  head  of  German 
opera.  Of  the  others,  Mendelssohn,  Schumann 
and  Liszt  wrote  piano-forte  music,  chamber 
music  and  orchestral  music.  Chopin's  writing, 
with  the  exceptions  of  his  two  concertos,  a  few 
other  concerted  pieces  and  some  songs,  was 
confined  to  the  piano-forte.  The  work  of  these 
four  men  has  been  so  fully  estimated,  especially 
as  regards  their  piano-forte  writing,  in  the  pres- 
ent writer's  "History  of  Piano-Forte  Music," 
that  the  subject  may  be  treated  briefly  here. 

Mendelssohn  was,  by  nature  and  education, 
a  classical  composer.  He  modeled  on  the 
classic  writers ;  the  violence,  self-assertion  and 
stormy  passion  of  the  extrame  romanticists 
was  foreign  to  his  nature  and  repulsive  to  his 
taste.  His  music  is.  above  all,  refined,  elegant, 
graceful.  His  style  is  clear  and  finished.  But 
he  could  not  escape  the  influences  of  his  time, 
and  was  more  or  less  of  a  romantic  composer, 
whether  he  would  or  no.  Probably  his  greatest 


Thf,  Romantic 
composers. 


Berlioz, 
1803-1869. 


Mendelssohn, 
1809-1847. 


150 


INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC,  PAST  AND  PRESENT. 


8"hwnann, 
1810-1856. 


orchestral  work  is  the  overture  to  Shakespeare's 
"Midsummer  Night's  Dream,"  a  thoroughly 
romantic  work  in  every  respect.  He  is  roman- 
tic, also,  in  that  he  sought,  in  his  overture, 
"  The  Hebrides,"  his  "  Italian,"  "  Scotch"  and 
"  Reformation  "  symphonies,  and  in  his  "  Songs 
Without  Words  "  for  the  piano-forte,  to  express 
emotions  connected  with  definite  scenes.  He 
wrote  a  great  deal  for  the  piano-forte  and  for 
the  organ,  and  some  excellent  chamber  music, 
besides  his  orchestral  works. 

Schumann  was  constitutionally  a  romanticist, 
and  his  natural  tendency  was  fostered  by  his 
early  reading  of  the  German  romantic  litera- 
ture. He  was  taciturn,  but  the  passion  which 
did  not  express  itself  in  words  or  behavior 
I  found  vent  in  his  music.  His  songs,  his  piano- 
forte works,  his  chamber  music,  his  symphonies, 
are  characterized  by  profound  feeling,  by  burn- 
ing passion,  often  by  headlong  impetuosity. 
His  imagination  is  vivid  and  powerful,  but  he 
has  also  light  and  playful  fancy.  His  intellect 
was  characterized  by  strength  and  depth, 
rather  than  by  clearness.  His  style  as  a  com- 
poser is  bold  and  original,  but  often  somewhat 
obscure.  This  last  quality  is  partly  due  to  his 
original  and  peculiar  rhythms.  He  was  late 
in  mastering  the  technic  of  composition,  and 
never  had  it  at  such  complete  command  as  did 
Mendelssohn,  whose  "  Midsummer  Night's 
Dream  "  overture,  perhaps  his  greatest  orches- 
tral work,  was  written  when  he  was  only  seven- 
teen years  of  age. 

Schumann  wrote  several  symphonies,  an 
opera,  "  Genoveva,"  and  some  cantatas ;  but  he 
will  probably  live  in  history  by  his  piano-forte 
music,  especially  the  Fantasia  op.  17,  the  Etu- 


LESSONS  AV  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


151 


des  Symphoniques,  the  Kreisleriana,  the  Novel- 
ettes, the  Fantasy  Pieces  and  the  Forest  Scenes, 
by  his  songs  and  his  chamber  music.  Schumann 
can  hardly  be  said  to  have  originated  any  new 
forms  ;  his  forms  are  adopted  or  slightly  modi- 
fied from  the  traditional  ones.  He  is  at  his  best 
when,  using  the  simpler  forms,  under  no  re- 
straints imposed  by  an  elaborate  plan,  he  gives 
free  rein  to  his  imagination,  and  allows  the 
stream  of  his  romantic  feeling  to  flow  without 
hindrance. 

Chopin  was  perhaps  the  most  strikingly 
original  of  all  the  romantic  writers  except 
Wagner.  His  reputation  depends  exclusively 
on  his  piano-forte  music.  It  is  characterized 
by  extreme  refinement  and  finish,  by  elegance 
and  grace,  but  some  of  it  also  by  a  volcanic 
passion  which  knows  no  restraint  but  that 
imposed  by  an  exquisitely  refined  artistic  per- 
ception. Chopin  is  profoundly  original  in  his 
melodies  and  embellishments,  in  his  harmonies 
and  cadences,  and  in  his  applications  of  the 
principles  of  form.  Among  his  greatest  works 
may  be  named  the  two  concertos,  especially  the 
one  in  E  minor,  the  Etudes,  op.  10  and  op.  25, 
some  of  the  Polonaises,  especially  those  in  E 
flat  and  in  A  flat,  the  Scherzos,  the  Ballades, 
the  Impromptus  and  the  Fantasie  in  F  minor. 
But  hardly  less  original  and  fine  are  the  Noc- 
turn,  Mazurkas  and  Preludes  and,  in  truth,  he 
has  written  almost  nothing  which  would  not  be 
sufficient  to  stamp  him  as  an  epoch-making 
composer. 

Liszt  will  be  known  in  history  as  the  man 
who,  more  than  any  other,  developed  the  mod- 
ern piano-forte  to  its  highest  capacity,  by  the 
demands  which  his  works  make  on  the  instru- 


LUBON  XVII. 


Chopin, 

1MO-LS4!!. 


Liszt, 
1811-18*6.. 


152 


INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC,  PAST  AND  PRESENT. 


LBWOK  XVII. 


The 
Symphonic 

Poem 

compared  urtth 
the  symphony. 


ment,  especially  as  regards  sonority.  He  also 
ranks  as  the  greatest  of  piano-forte  virtuosi. 
But  he  will  also  be  known  as  the  inventor  of 
the  "  Symphonic  Poem, "an  important  modifica- 
tion of  the  orchestral  S3rmphony. 

The  Symphcny,  as  developed  by  Haydn  and 
Mozart  and  applied  to  the  highest  ends  of 
emotional  expression  by  Beethoven,  may  be 
regarded  as  the  culmination  of  classical  form. 
In  its  most  elaborate  form,  it  consisted  of  four 
separate  pieces  or  "  movements,"  contrasted 
with  one  another  in  tempo  and  in  emotional 
character.  One  of  these  movements  was  always 
a  "  sonata-form,"  *  the  most  elaborate  of  the 
different  forms  of  the  classical  epoch. 

The  symphonic  poem,  on  the  other  hand,  is 
the  culmination  of  the  romantic  ideal  in  the 
field  of  instrumental  music.  That  ideal  de- 
mands that  form  shall  be  subordinate  to  con- 
tent ;  that  the  free  expression  of  feeling  shall 
be  the  first  aim  and  end  of  music  ;  and  it  re- 
gards form  merely  as  an  indispensable  means 
to  this  end.  In  the  symphony,  each  separate 
movement  serves  to  express  a  separate  phase 
of  emotional  experience.  It  comes  to  an  end, 
the  players  stop,  and  the  work  enters  upon  an- 
other phase  of  feeling,  disconnected  with  what 
precedes  and  what  follows.  But  in  actual  ex- 
perience, feeling  is  continuous  throughout  our 
waking  hours.  One  emotion  fades  into  another, 
or  is  replaced  by  another,  without  any  break  in 
consciousness.  Commonly,  each  phase  of  feel- 
ing is  developed  from  those  which  went  before 
it ;  when  it  is  not,  there  is  either  a  profound 
modification  of  feeling  or  a  change,  which 


*  See  the  chapter  on  "  Form  "  in  the  writer's  "  History 
of  Piano-Forte  Music,"  or  any  good  work  on  musical  form. 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


amount  to  revolution,  by  the  occurrence  of 
some  unexpected  event.  The  symphonic  poem 
seeks  to  conform  itself  to  these  facts  of  emo- 
tional experience.  Its  movements  follow  each 
other  without  break,  and  it  aims  to  express 
truthfully  not  only  separate  phases  of  feeling, 
but  the  connection  and  relation  of  these  phases. 
It  discards  entirely  the  classical  sonata-form, 
rondos  and  dance-forms,  such  as  the  scherzo 
and  the  minuet,  and  aims  to  determine  the  suc- 
cession and  relation  of  its  musical  ideas  solely 
in  accordance  with  the  exigencies  of  emotional 
expression.  Of  course,  it  must  and  does  meet 
the  intellectual  and  aesthetic  requirements  of 
every  work  of  art.  It  must,  in  order  to  be 
beautiful,  meet  the  demands  of  unity,  variety, 
symmetry,  contrast  and  climax.  But  this 
orderly  arrangement  of  ideas  is  not,  as  in  the 
classical  symphony,  predetermined  according 
to  a  cut-aiid-dried  formal  plan,  to  which  the 
emotional  content  is  subordinate,  but  is  de- 
pendent on  the  natural  order  and  succession  of 
the  emotions  to  be  expressed.  In  the  syrn- 
phon}r,  the  logical  order  is  form  first  and  con- 
tent second.  In  the  symphonic  poem,  the  logi- 
cal order  is  content  first  and  form  second. 
Form  is  only  a  means  of  expressing  feeling. 

Perhaps  a  word  may  be  needed  here  with  ref- 
erence to  the  capacity  of  music  to  express 
feeling.  No  one  will  doubt  that  music  is 
capable  of  expressing  and  revealing  such 
simple  emotional  states  as  pain  and  pleasure. 
Every  one  regards  certain  music  as  cheerful,  or 
joyous,  or  exultant,  or  martial,  or  sad,  or 
solemn,  or  melancholy,  etc.,  as  the  case  may  be. 
But  can  music  express  the  more  complex  feel- 
ings, such  as  love,  hate,  anger,  jealousy  ?  The 


Music  as  an 

expression  of 

emotion. 


154 


INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC,  PAST  AND  PRESENT. 


"Programme 
•  Music." 


answer  is,  yes  and  no.  Love,  for  example,  im- 
plies the  relation  of  two  persons,  and  these 
persons  and  their  relation  constitutes  a  neces- 
sary element  of  the  conception.  This  element 
music  cannot  express.  There  is  no  musical 
formula,  no  succession  or  combination  of  tones 
which  can  represent  to  our  minds  a  man  or  a 
woman,  or  the  relation  of  the  two.  But  the 
emotional  element  of  the  case,  the  states  or 
movements  of  feeling  involved,  are  expressible 
in  music.  It  is  entirely  possible  to  write  music 
which  shall  be  universally  acknowledged  as  ap- 
propriate to  a  love-scene,  as  revealing  an  emo- 
tional state  which  could  exist  under  no  other 
conditions.  Love,  then,  is  not  merely  a  feeling, 
but  the  conception  of  it  implies  an  intellectual 
as  well  as  an  emotional  element,  and  this  ele- 
ment must  be  supplied  by  words,  or  scenery,  or 
pantomime,  or  by  all  three,  if  the  conception  is 
to  come  to  complete  and  vivid  realization. 
Music  expresses  only  the  emotional  element, 
but  it  expresses  it  with  a 'force,  subtlety  and 
intensity  such  as  no  other  means  of  emotional 
expression  can  pretend  to.  These  considera- 
tions are  the  true  ground  on  which  the  Wagne- 
rian  music-drama  must  rest  for  its  justification. 
It  is  the  union  of  all  the  arts  for  the  complete 
embodiment  of  complex  mental  states  and  move- 
ments, such  as  cannot  be  fully  and  perfectly 
realized  to  the  imagination  by  means  of  any 
one  of  them  alone,  or  perhaps  even  by  any  two 
in  combination. 

The  symphony  and  the  symphonic  poem, 
being  instrumental  music,  can,  of  course,  ex- 
press feeling  and  only  feeling.  But,  since  all 
our  feelings,  except  occasionally  the  simplest 
ones,  are  induced  by  ideas,  by  scenes,  events, 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


155 


the  relations  of  persons,  etc.,  it  was  natural 
and  perhaps  inevitable,  that  the  composer  of 
the  symphonic  poem,  starting  from  the  desire 
to  express  definite  feelings  and  laying  out  his 
emotional  plan  on  which  the  form  of  his  work 
was  to  depend,  should  imagine  to  himself  some 
story.  A  connected  series  of  events,  power- 
fully affecting  the  feelings  and  progressing  to  a 
climax,  would  afford  the  needed  basis  for  such 
a  work,  and  would  be  likel}7  to  kindle  his  im- 
agination more  vividly  than  would  mere  musical 
phrases  unconnected  in  his  mind  with  any 
characters  or  defined  occurrences.  This  is 
what  Liszt  did.  His  symphonic  poems  bear 
such  titles  as  "Mazeppa,"  "Tasso,"  "Hamlet," 
"  Dante,"  "Prometheus,"  etc.,  and  are  attempts 
to  express  the  train  of  emotions  appropriate  to 
the  series  of  events  in  the  stories,  and  to  ex- 
press them  in  their  natural  connections  and 
relations. 

Whether  he  aimed  to  express  them  with  such 
definiteness  as  to  make  his  music  suggest 
clearly  each  separate  incident  of  the  story  be- 
yond the  possibility  of  mistake,  may  perhaps 
be  questioned.  The  best  of  all  his  "  symphonic 
poems"  is  probably  " Les  Preludes"  which 
aims  to  express  the  emotions  awakened  by  a 
passage  from  Lamartine,  the  gist  of  which  is 
that  life  in  all  its  vicissitudes  is  but  a  prelude 
to  eternity.  This  central  thought  gives  scope 
for  lofty  feeling,  noble  aspiration,  solemn,  sub- 
lime emotion  in  the  contemplation  of  Infinity, 
and  for  the  contrast  of  such  feelings  with  the 
ordinary  experiences  and  passions  of  human 
nature.  Liszt's  success  in  this  work  is  proba- 
bly due,  not  only  to  the  more  inspiring  char- 
acter of  his  theme,  but  also  to  the  fact  that 


LISBON  XVII. 


LiszPs 
syrnphonic 
poem  "Les 
Jf^relitdes." 


156 


INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC,  PAST  AND  PRESENT. 


LISSOM  XVII. 

Tendency  to 
overstep  the 

limits  of 

expression  in 

music 


2,iizt's  place  in 
musical 
history. 


there  was  no  story.  It  is  no  part  of  the  func- 
tion of  music  to  tell  a  story.  While  it  may 
legitimately  illustrate  a  story  by  intensifying 
the  expression  of  the  feelings  connected  with 
it,  there  is  a  constant  temptation,  in  a  purely 
instrumental  composition,  where  a  story  is  used 
as  basis,  to  make  the  music  overstep  its  natural 
limitations.  There  will  be  a  constant  tendency 
to  try,  not  only  to  express  the  feelings,  but  to 
suggest  the  ideas.  There  have  been  marvel- 
ously  clever,  ingenious  and  measurably  suc- 
cessful instances  of  this  in  the  "programme 
music  "  which  makes  up  so  large  a  portion  of 

eNWork  of  the  romantic  writers,  and  to  which 
Berlioz's  symphonies  and  most  "symphonic 
poems  "  belong.  But,  at  best,  such  efforts  can 
only  be  incompletely  successful.  Purely  in- 
strumental music  is  better  confined  to  the  ex- 
pression of  moods  and  movements  of  feelings 
without  seeking  to  embody  other  than  musical 
ideas.  If  a  story  is  to  be  told,  words  or  visible 
scenes  and  pantomime  can  express  fully  and 
clearly  what  music  can,  at  best,  only  suggest 
vaguely  and  indefinitely. 

It  is,  perhaps,  too  early  io  make  a  final  esti- 
mate of  Liszt's  rank  as  a  composer.  His  place 
in  history,  as  regards  his  creative  work,  will 
ultimately  depend  on  his  intellect,  imagination, 
originality,  feelings  and  moral  qualities.  As 
regards  intellect,  imagination  and  originality 
he  will  rank  high;  though  this  latter  quality 
showed  itself  less  in  power  of  melodic  invention 
than  in  his  innovations  in  harmony  and  in  his 
extensions  of  the  traditional  limits  of  tonality. 
In  these  particulars  he  is  hardly  inferior  to 
Wagner  himself.  But  when  we  come  to  the 
content  of  his  music,  to  the  feelings  he  sought 


LESSONS  JN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


157 


to  express  and  the  moral  qualities  they  reveal, 
it  is  at  least  very  doubtful  whether  he  can  be 
accorded  ai^  but  an  inferior  rank.  "  Les  Pre- 
ludes "  is  probably  his  greatest  work,  and  it 
certainly  deals  with  the  noblest  and  most  in- 
spiring themes,  but  it  nevertheless  reaches  no 
such  heights  of  elevated  emotion  as  do  the 
noblest  works  of  Bach,  of  Beethoven  or  of 
Wagner.  The  moral  implications  of  the  best 
works  of  these  three  men  are  such  as  raise 
them  high  above  the  plane  of  feeling  revealed 
in  the  best  of  Liszt's  compositions.  But  the 
fascinating  influence  of  his  personality,  the 
dazzling  brilliancy  of  his  performances  as  a 
piano-forte  virtuoso,  the  force  of  his  character, 
the  consciousness  of  power  and  the  quiet  audac- 
ity with  which  he  commanded  worldly  success, 
as  well  as  some  amiable  and  generous  qualities, 
have  so  possessed  the  imaginations  and  blinded 
the  perceptions  of  two  generations  of  young 
musicians,  that  comparatively  few  of  his  con- 
temporaries are  capable  of  applying  sober  judg- 
ment, either  to  his  works  or  to  his  personal 
character,  of  which  his  works  are  the  outcome. 
Later  generations  will  probably  judge  his  seri- 
ous defects  much  less  leniently. 

Among  the  best  writers  of  "  programme 
music"  is  Camille  St.  Saens  (born  1835),  a 
Parisian  organist,  pianist,  conductor  and  com- 
poser of  great  ability.  His  symphonic  poems, 
"  Phaeton,"  "  Danse  Macabre,"  "  Le  Rouet  d' 
Omphale"  and  "  La  jeunesse  d'  Hercule  "  are 
extremely  clever  and  successful  attempts  at 
suggesting  the  story  indicated  by  the  title,  by 
means  of  characteristic  musical  treatment.  But 
he  has  not  confined  himself  to  this  field  of  com- 
position. He  has  also  cultivated  the  classical 


Saint  Sttens. 


158 


INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC,  PAST  AND  PRESENT. 


L«sso*  XVIL 


Other 

<xntipoiter»  of 
instrumental 
music  in  our 

time. 


forms,  writing  symphonies,  concertos,  organ 
music  and  piano  music,  besides  church  music, 
an  oratorio  and  several  operas.  He  ranks  high 
among  living  writers,  and  is  the  most  origi- 
nal among  the  younger  generation  of  French 
composers,  as  Berlioz  is  the  most  original  in 
the  generation  which  preceded  him.  His  work 
is  much  more  sane  than  that  of  his  extremely 
eccentric  predecessor,  whose  work,  although  it 
has  latterly  excited  much  interest  as  the  work 
of  a  powerful  intellect  and  a  brilliant,  vivid, 
lu-ated  imagination,  is  never  likely  to  be 
accepted  as  a  model.  In  one  respect  only  has 
Berlioz's  life- work  been  obviously  productive  of 
results  in  the  musical  world.  He  enriched  the 
orchestra  with  new  instruments  and  with  new 
combinations  and  contrasts,  producing  many 
novelties  in  special  effects.  His  work  on  in- 
strumentation has  been  widely  studied  and  ver}' 
influential. 

In  Germany,  composers  of  sonatas,  sympho- 
nies and  chamber  music  have  been  innumerable, 
this  kind  of  work  being  aimed  at  by  every 
ambitious  student.  The  greatest  names  are 
Joachim  .fta/f  (1822-1882),  who  occupies  middle 
ground  between  the  classical  composers  and 
the  extreme  romanticists;  Johannes  Brahme 
(born  1833), and  Anton  Rubinstein  (born  1830), 
whose  work  is  of  the  most  important  in  our 
generation.  Other  noteworthy  names  in  this 
field  are  Carl  Eeinecke  (born  1824),  Niels  W. 
Gade  (born  1817),  Robert  Volkmann  (born 
1815),  W.  Sterndale  Bennett  (1816-1875),  an 
English  pupil  of  Mendelssohn;  Max  Bruch 
(born  1838),  Heinrich  Hoffman  (born  1842), 
8.  Judassohn  (born  1831),  Anton  Dvorak 
(pron.  Dvorshak,  born  1841),  a  most  origi- 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


159 


nal  and  eccentric  genius ;  Edw.  Grieg  (born 
1843),  /.  L.  Nicode  (born  1853), '  Morit.z 
Moszkowski  (born  1854),  Philip  ticharwenka 
(born  1847),  and  his  brother,  Xaver  (born 
1850),  Peter  Tschaikowsky  (born  1840),  G. 
tiyambati  (born  1843),  one  of  the  best  represent- 
atives of  the  New  Itaty,  F.  H.  Cowen  (born 
1852),  and  A.  C.  Mackenzie  (born  1847,  in  Eng- 
land), and  John  K.  Paine  (born  1839,  in  this 
country).  This  list  might  be  indefinitely  ex- 
tended. The  mere  mention  of  all  the  names  of 
composers  of  ability  and  promise  would  take 
up  too  much  space  for  our  present  limits.  It  is 
peculiarly  gratifying  to  an  American  to  see  how 
many  young  composers  are  now  coming  forward 
in  this  country,  with  thoroughly  creditable 
work.  This  remark  would  be  still  more  forcible 
if  applied  only  to  pianists  and  composers  for 
the  piano-forte.  America  now  contains  a  large 
number  of  these  of  very  high  standing,  and 
their  ranks  are  being  constantly  recruited. 

Because  of  the  primary  importance  of  the 
violin  as  an  orchestral  instrument,  this  lesson 
would  hardly  be  complete  without  a  brief  sketch 
of  the  progress  of  violin  music  since  the  time 
of  Corelli.  In  his  day,  Italy  was  the  home  of 
violin  music,  as  of  all  other  music,  and  that 
country  long  retained  her  supremacy  in  this 
field.  Omitting  lesser  names,  the  next  great 
Italian  violinist  was  Giuseppe  Tartini  (1692- 
1770).  He  was  a  highly  educated  man,  and 
contributed  much  not  only  to  the  development 
of  violin-playing,  but  to  general  musical  intelli- 
gence. He  discovered  the  combination  (re- 
sultant) tones,  and  utilized  them  as  a  means  of 
securing  pure  intonation.  He  not  only  derived 
the  major  chord  (over-chord)  from  the  first  six 


LKS30N   XVII. 


Violin  music. 


Tartini. 


160 


INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC,  PAST  AND  PRESENT. 


Viottl. 


Paganini. 


of  the  overtone  series,  as  did  Rameau,his  great 
contemporary,  but  he  succeeded,  where  Rameau 
had  failed,  in  basing  the  minor  chord  (under- 
chord)  on  the  undertone  series.  But,  as  in  the 
time  of  Zarlino,  who  made  the  same  discovery 
before  him,  this  idea  bore  no  fruit,  because  the 
mind  of  musical  Europe  was  not  yet  prepared 
to  receive  it.  Whether  the  time  is  even  yet 
ripe  for  the  inevitable  revolution  in  harmonic 
conceptions  consequent  on  this  idea,  remains 
to  be  seen.  It  doubtless  lies  at  the  foundation 
of  scientific  harmony  teaching  in  the  future, 
near  or  remote. 

Tartini  was  a  prolific  composer,  writing  a 
great  deal  of  violin  and  chamber  music.  He 
had  a  romantic  experience  in  early  life,  conse- 
quent on  a  secret  marriage  with  a  young  lady 
related  to  Cardinal  Cornaro,  the  discovery  of 
which  necessitated  flight  and  a  long  conceal- 
ment in  a  monastery.  Most  of  his  life  was 
passed  as  solo-violinist,  orchestral  conductor 
and  teacher  in  Padua,  where  he  founded  a  high 
school  of  violin  playing.  His  compositions 
rank  high,  and  are  even  now  played. 

Another  great  Italian  name  in  the  field  of 
violin-playing  is  Giovanni  Battista  Viotti  (1753- 
1824),  called,  "  the  father  of  modern  violin- 
playing,"  and  regarded  as  one  of  the  most  im- 
portant composers  for  his  instrument.  He 
wrote  twenty-nine  violin  concertos,  eighteen 
violin  sonatas,  and  a  great  deal  of  chamber 
music.  A  larger  part  of  his  life  was  spent  in 
Paris. 

The  greatest  of  all  Italian  virtuosi  on  the 
violin,  and  probably  the  greatest  player  yet 
known,  as  regards  technic,  was  Niccolo  Pa- 
ganini  (1774-1840).  He  was  a  Genoese,  came 


LESSONS  7.V  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


161 


of  an  uncultivated  famity,  had  little  or  no  edu- 
cation, and  was  by  no  means  an  admirable 
character.  But  he  possessed  special  talent  for 
music,  early  became  a  master  of  the  violin, 
combined  all  the  excellence  of  other  virtuosi 
and  surpassed  them  all,  and  astonished  all 
Europe  with  his  enormous  technical  attain- 
ments, and  with  the  fire  and  passion  of  his 
playing.  He  was  not  an  interpreter  of  the  great 
classics  for  his  instrument;  he  was  original, 
wilful,  capricious,  and,  above  all,  effective,  not 
to  say  sensational. 

In  France  and  Belgium,  a  French-speaking 
country,  there  have  been  many  great  violinists 
in  our  time — Artot,  Baillot,  de  Beriot,  Lafont, 
Molique,  Leonard,  Vieuxtemps,  Sauret,  Rhode, 
Ovide  Musin,  and  others.  In  Germany  and 
elsewhere  in  Europe,  the  greatest  names  of  our 
century  are  Spohr,  Ferdinand  David,  long  a 
distinguished  teacher  in  the  Leipzig  Conserva- 
tory, Kreutzer,  Ernst,  Wienawski,  Auer,  Dan- 
da,  Joseph  Joachim,  August  Wilhelmi,  Bemenyi, 
Saraste.  Many  other  distinguished  players 
might  be  named,  and  there  are  now  young  vio- 
linists coming  forward  who  bid  fair  to  rival  the 
solo  performances  of  the  best  of  their  predeces- 
sors. 


LlSBOK   XVII. 


Modern 
Violinists* 


162 


INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC,  PAST  AND  PRESENT, 


QUESTIONS. 

How  did  the  modern  symphony  arise? 
What  is  a  "suite?" 

Who  were  the  greatest  writers  of  suites? 
Who  was  the  first  composer  who  employed   the  title 
sonata?" 

How  many  movements  in  D.  Scarlatti's  sonatas? 
How  did  these  differ  from  the  pieces  of  Bach    and 
Haendel? 

Who  was  the  greatest  composer  of  fugues? 
Who  wrote  the  first  harpischord  sonatas  in  three  move- 
ments? 

What  great  composers  modeled  their  sonatas  on  his  ? 
Describe  Haydn's  services  in  the  development  of  instru- 
mental music. 

How  did  Mozart's  symphonies  differ  from  Haydn's? 
In  whose  works  did  the  symphony  form  culminate  ? 
Who  is  acknowledged  as  the  greatest  of  symphony  com- 
posers and  in  what  does  his  superiority  consist  ? 

Give  some  account  of  Schubert's   instrumental  music. 
Weber's. 

Name  some  noted  contemporaries   and  successors   of 
theirs. 

Who  were  the  great  romantic  composers? 
Give  some  account  of  the  works  of  Mendelssohn,  Cho- 
pin and  Schumann. 

Also  of  Berlioz  and  his  works. 

Name  some  of  the  principal  works  of  each  of  these 
composers. 

By  what  achievements  will  Liszt  be  known  in  history? 
What  is  the  characteristic  difference  between  the  Sym- 
phony and  Symphonic  Poem  f 

What  is  the  relation  of  music,  as  a  means  of  expression, 
to  such  emotions  as  love,  hate,  etc.  ? 

What  considerations  justify  Wagner's  principles  as  a 
composer  of  music  drama  ? 

How  comes  it  that  so  many  symphonic  poems  of  Liszt 
and  others  have  names-implying  a  story  or  underlying  plot  ? 
Can  music  tell  a  story  ? 
If  not,  why  not  ? 

Given  a  story  which  excites  a  series  of  contrasted  feel- 
ings, can  music  suggest  the  story  to  any  one  who  knows 
beforehand  what  it  is? 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


163 


Would  it  be  likely  to  suggest  the  story  to  any  one  who 
did  not  know  beforehand  that  the  composer  had  the  story 
in  mind  when  he  wrote  his  music  ? 

Name  Liszt's  greatest  orchestral  work. 

Why  is  it  more  successful  than  his  other  works? 

How  does  it  compare  in  nobility  with  the  greatest  works 
of  other  great  writers  ? 

By  what  qualities  will  Liszt's  final  place  in  history  be 
determined  ? 

In  which  of  these  qualities  is  his  pre-eminence  doubt- 
ful? 

By  what  qualities  did  he  become  popular? 

Name  the  best  of  the  younger  French  composers  of 
programme  music  and  give  some  account  of  his  work. 

Give  some  of  the  greatest  names  in  instrumental  music 
in  Europe  and  in  America. 

Give  some  account  of  Tartini. 

Of  Viotti. 

Of  Paganini. 

.Name  some  of  the  other  great  violinists. 


LXMON  XVIII. 


Relation  of 

Ancient  to 

Modern  Music. 


Twelve 
centuries  of 
but  slight 
progress. 


LESSON  XYIII. 

CONCLUSION. 

WE  have  now  dealt,  in  outline,  with  the  whole 
history  of  music  as  developed  in  the  Christian 
Era.  Pre-christian  music  has  received  but  slight 
treatment,  not  because  the  subject  is  not  in- 
teresting, but  because  it  is  greath*  inferior  in 
interest  and  importance  to  our  own  music. 
Ancient  music,  even  in  Greece,  never  passed  a 
certain  rudimentary  stage,  and  it  is  to  our  own 
time  that  we  must  look  for  all  the  higher  de- 
velopments of  the  art.  Nevertheless,  the  Greek 
theory  and  practice,  although  the  latter  was 
imperfectly  understood  and  the  former  grossly 
misapprehended,  exercised  on  Christian  music 
an  influence  so  important  that  it  seemed  neces- 
sary to  give  a  brief  account  of  the  Greek  theory, 
at  least,  and  to  point  out  its  relations  to  our 
own,  as  was  done  in  Lesson  I.  But  the  limits 
of  the  space  allowed  forbade  a  complete  state- 
ment of  all  the  later  refinements  of  Greek 
theory,  such  as  the  enharmonic  and  chromatic 
modes,  etc. 

The  history  of  modern  music  begins  with  the 
first  attempts  of  Christian  prelates  to  improve 
church  music.  The  first  events  of  note  are  few 
and  far  between.  The  setting  up  of  singing 
schools  and  choirs  in  the  early  part  of  the  fourth 
century,  the  establishment  of  the  four  "  authen- 
tic "  scales  by  St.  Ambrose  about  the  end  of  the 
same  century,  the  addition  of  the  four  "plagal" 
scales  by  Gregory  the  Great,  two  hundred  years 
later,  the  spread  of  the  Gregorian  chant  under 
the  Empire  of  Charlemagne,  the  first  crude 
164 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTORY. 


1C5 


attempts  at  harmony  by  Hucbald,  three  hundred 
years  after  Gregory,  the  beginnings  of  our  staff 
notation  by  Guido  of  Arezzo  a  hundred  years 
after  Hucbald,  the  first  use  of  notes  to  measure 
*-he  length  of  tones  by  Franco,  of  Cologne,  two 
hundred  jrears  later  still,  these  are  all  the  events 
of  note  in  the  development  of  scientific  music 
for  the  first  twelve  centuries  of  Christianity. 
It  was  a  thousand  years  after  the  early  Christians 
began  singing  hymns  in  their  worship  before 
there  was  any  adequate  means  of  representing 
relative  pitch,  and  twelve  hundred  years  before 
there  was  any  adequate  notation  for  represent- 
ing the  length  of  tones.  Thus  slowly  did  the 
fundamentals  of  musical  science  develop  them- 
selves. 

After  the  thirteenth  century  progress  went 
on  with  constantly  accelerating  rapidity.  The 
beginning  of  the  fourteenth  century  ushered  in 
the  great  and  decisive  epoch  of  the  Netherland- 
ers,  and  at  the  very  culmination  of  their  work 
came  the  invention  of  opera,  as  an  attempt  to 
revive  the  Greek  drama,  and  the  oratorio,  grow- 
ing out  of  the  miracle  plays.  Out  of  these  has 
come  a  steady  growth  up  to  the  latest  culmina- 
tion of  the  opera  in  the  music-drama_Q_f_  Wagner. 
These  forms  of  art  necessitated  the, perfection 
of  vocal  music,  both  solo  and  choral,  and  the 
independent  development  of  the  organ  and 
harpsichord  and  of  the  several  orchestral  instru- 
ments. Out  of  the  latter  came  solo  playing  and 
the  special  development  of  instrumental  music, 
culminating  in  the  fugue,  as  the  acme  of  the 
contrapuntal  style  and  in  the  sonata,  symphony 
and  finally,  of  the  symphonic  poem  as  the  acme 
of  free  style. 


LESSON  XVIII. 


Accelerated 
progress  from 

the 

13th  century 
onward. 


166 


CONCLUSION. 


No  new  path, 
yet  clearly 
marked  out. 


Theflfldof 
the  ti/mphonic 
poem  open  to 
original  work. 


Thus  far  we  have  come ;  and  the  question 
naturally  arises :  What  next  ?  Is  there  to  be 
an  advance  on  Wagner  in  the  field  of  the  music- 
drama?  If  so,  in  what  direction?  Will  any 
composer  in  the  field  of  the  oratoria  surpass 
Haendel's  Messiah  or  Bach's  Passion  Music 
according  to  St.  Matthew?  Will  orchestral  music 
go  beyond  the  Beethoven  symphonies  or  the 
symphonic  poems  of  the  later  romanticists? 

If  there  is  now  existing  any  new  principle  to 
be  developed  in  any  field  of  musical  art,  it  is 
not  plainly  to  be  seen,  and,  so  far  as  known  to 
the  present  writer,  no  one  has  announced  the 
discovery  of  any  new  path  into  which  the  com- 
posers of  the  next  few  decades  are  to  lead  us. 
Instrumental  composers  content  themselves 
with  reproducing  the  classic  forms  of  Mozart 
and  Beethoven,  infusing  into  them  more  or  less 
of  the  spirit  of  the  romantic  school,  or  they 
return  to  still  earlier,  even  archaic  forms,  such 
as  the  suite  and  its  components.  Comparatively 
few  seek  to  follow  in  the  steps  of  Liszt  and  of 
Berlioz.  Yet  precisely  in  the  field  of  the  sym- 
phonic poem  is  there  room  for  the  originality  of 
genius  to  assert  itself.  That  form  is  new  and  it 
is  also  legitimate,  based  on  true  natural  princi- 
ples. Liszt  originated  it,  but  he  ctid  not  exfiaust 
it.  With  the  symphony  it  is  different.  Beet- 
hoven's genius  was  so  colossal  that  it  is  hardly 
conceivable  that  his  greatest  symphonies  can 
ever  be  surpassed.  Whereas  Liszt's  genius  was 
by  no  means  commensurate  with  the  form  he 
invented.  It  is  quite  within  the  possibilities 
that  men  now  living  may  listen  to  symphonic 
poems  by  some  composer  as  yet  unheard  of,  the 
content  of  which  shall  be  vastly  more  sublime 
than  that  of  any  such  works  now  existing. 


LESSONS  IN  MUSICAL  HISTOR  Y. 


167 


As  regards  oratorio,  no  one  seems  to  dream 
of  any  advance  in  principle  on  those  of  Haendel. 
Mendelssohn's  "  Elijah  "  is  more  dramatic,  but 
that  is  merely  because  it  deals  with  a  subject 
capable  of  dramatic  treatment.  And  no  ora- 
torio since  "  Elijah  "  has  equalled  that  work. 

The  music-drama  of  Wagner  represents  the 
culmination  both  of  dramatic  ideals  and  dra- 
matic effects  in  the  realm  of  opera,  so  far  as  yet 
appears  and  so  far  as  can  now  be  foreseen.  And 
as  regards  solo  performances,  both  technical 
skill  and  interpretative  power  seem  to  have 
reached  the  limit  of  human  capability. 

Nevertheless  it  would  be  rash  to  conclude 
that  the  art  of  music  has  fully  exhausted  its 
possibilities  and  is  now  to  enter  on  a  period  of 
stagnation  and  decadence,  as  other  arts  have 
done.  It  would  be  presumptuous  now,  certain- 
ly, to  affirm  that  the  next  generation  may  not 
have  as  great  surprises  in  store  for  it  as  the 
great  romanticists  have  given  us.  When  they 
have  come,  if  they  do  come,  they  will  furnish 
matter  for  the  critic  and  the  historian.  At 
present  they  are  beyond  prophecy  and  even 
beyond  conjecture. 


LKSSOS.  XVIII. 

Apparent 
culmination  of 
the  opera  and 
the  Qratorio. 


168  CONCLUSION. 


QUESTIONS. 

Why  was  it  best  to  deal  but  briefly  with  Ancient  Music? 

Why  deal  with  it  at  all  ? 

Describe  the  slow  progress  of  early  Christian  music. 

Give  a  brief  summary  of  musical  progress  after  1300. 

Do  we  know  of  any  new  principle  in  musical  art  likely 
to  be  developed  in  the  near  future  ? 

Why  is  there  now  more  room  for  the  exercise  of  original 
creative  power  in  the  field  of  the  symphonic  poem  than 
in  that  of  the  symphony  ? 

Is  there  any  apparent  prospect  that  the  Wagnerian 
music-drama  will  be  surpassed  ? 


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170 


TABLE  OF  CHRONOLOGY. 


TABLE  OF  CHRONOLOGY. 


171 


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TABLE  OF  CHRONOLOGY. 


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INDEX. 

PAGE. 

Preface iii 

Introduction vii 

Oriental  and  Ancient  Music I 

The  First  Ten  Centuries  of  Christian  Music 9 

From  Guido  of  Arezzo  to  the  Beginning  of  the  Supremacy  of 

the  Netherlanders,  about  1000  to  1400 19 

The  Epoch  of  the  Netherlanders,  about  1400  to  1600 27 

The  Rise  of  Dramatic  Music,  1600 37 

The  Beginning  of  Oratorio,  1600 46 

General  Survey  of  the  Musical  Situation  at  the  End  of  the  Six- 
teenth Century.     Condition  of  Instrumental  Music 52 

The  Progress  of  Opera 64 

Music  in  the  Seventeenth  Century 75 

Music  in  the  Seventeenth  Century  (Cpncluded) 83 

Italian  Opera  from  Alessandro  Scarlatti  to  the  Present 91 

French  Opera  from  Lully's  Time  to  the  Present 101 

German  Opera 109 

The  Opera :     Summary  and  Outlook 128 

Oratorio,  Cantata,  Passion  Music  and  Sacred  Music  from  1700 

to  the  Present 133 

The  Development  of  the  Song 141 

Instrumental  Music  from  1700  to  the  Present 145 

Conclusion .^164 

A  Comparative  Table  of  Chronology 169 


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